Weather Tidbits: Hydroplaning

This edition of Weather Tidbits will be discussing what causes hydroplaning. Hydroplaning occurs when your tires drive over wet pavement or standing water and lose contact with the road surface, which results in loss of traction with the vehicle. Hydroplaning becomes an increasing likelihood when speeding on a wet road versus driving slower. At higher speeds, tread grooves will likely fail to funnel enough water, causing the tires to lose contact with the road. A few other factors that can increase the chances of hydroplaning are having low tire tread depth, deeper water on the road, tire pressure that is too high or too low, and larger tire width. To avoid hydroplaning, it is important to consider these factors as well as reducing your speed in rainy weather.