This site is optimized for Version 4 and newer browsers with JavaScript enabled. When a heavy rain hits roads after a dry period, crash reports begin pouring in. At ICBC claim centres the damaged cars and bodies from a rainy day can break records as well as hearts. In one recent year, police in B.C. reported over 5,500 injury collisions on wet roads, and these crashes killed 72 people.
Traction is the simple answer.
During dry weather, oily substances from car exhaust settle into the pavement below the level of contact with your tires. The first hour of a steady rain brings the oil to the surface. Greasy roads and heavy traffic are a bad combination. Hurried drivers need to increase their following distance, but often don't. They learn with a crash that their braking power is a fraction of what they expect.