When driving on roads that may be slippery:
- Always drive at the maximum speed limit.
- Use cruise control to maintain a steady speed.
- Reduce your following distance.
- Do not make any sudden changes in speed or direction. ✓
Answer: D. Do not make any sudden changes in speed or direction.
When the road may be slippery, do not make any sudden changes in speed or direction — keep your braking, accelerating, and steering smooth and gradual.
Why this is the answer
The handbook's icy-bridge warning tells drivers to slow down and avoid braking suddenly or making sharp or sudden movements. That is the same habit you want on any surface that may be slick: gentle inputs instead of jerky ones. The handbook also points out that wet or slippery surfaces cut down braking and handling ability, so a driver who avoids abrupt speed and direction changes keeps the vehicle settled when grip is already reduced.
Why the other answers are wrong
- A. Always drive at the maximum speed limit. — The handbook tells you to reduce your speed when a hazard is ahead, not to hold the maximum posted speed, which leaves you no margin on a slick surface.
- B. Use cruise control to maintain a steady speed. — Nothing in these passages recommends cruise control on slippery roads; the guidance is to be ready to slow down and avoid sudden braking.
- C. Reduce your following distance. — Closing the gap gives you less room to react, and the handbook notes that slippery surfaces impair braking ability, so you want more space, not less.
Remember it
Think smooth on slick: hands, feet, and wheel all gentle, nothing jerky.
Official handbook: Texas Driver Handbook (DL-7), Chapter 5: Signals, Signs, and Markers , p. 28