The road is wet and visibility is poor. How should you adjust your three-second following distance?
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A.
Shorten the gap to about half a car length.
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B.
Keep three seconds since it already works in any weather.
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C.
Reduce to two seconds so you can react faster.
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D.
Increase the following distance beyond three seconds. Correct
The answer is "Increase the following distance beyond three seconds."
The manual is explicit that when road or weather conditions are not good, you increase the following distance beyond the three seconds the base rule sets. Choice B is where a driver ends up who has locked onto three seconds as a universal answer and does not read past that sentence in the manual.
The traps in the wrong answers
A. Shorten the gap to about half a car length.
A tighter gap reduces the space available to stop on slick pavement. Trades cushion for closeness, applying a dry-pavement habit to a road that needs more room, not less.
B. Keep three seconds since it already works in any weather.
The manual sets three seconds for good roads in good weather and tells you to increase from there. Locks onto one number as universal and stops reading before the sentence that raises it.
C. Reduce to two seconds so you can react faster.
Cutting the cushion leaves less time and distance to stop, not more. Treats a shorter gap as a way to react faster, confusing reaction time with the distance a wet tire actually needs.
This question tests your knowledge of Defensive Driving in Illinois. Source: Illinois Rules of the Road, "Chapter 11: Safe Driving Tips, Following Distances," p.83..
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