Road Safety and Flood Risks for Drivers and Pedestrians

The last months have seen an increased focus on flooding, and the risks of heavy rains, fast-flowing rivers, and floods have been discussed on several forums.

We would like to discuss in this section a few more facts about flood risks and advise how all our road users can protect themselves from harm on the roads.

Danger of flowing water over roads and low water bridges

We need to be aware of the following facts:

Flowing water applies pressure to contact areas. The higher the speed, the higher the pressure.
With water that is one meter high, it will flow out at a speed of 4.47 meters per second or 16 km/h. The pressure is one metric ton per square meter.
With a wheel half under water, the area is 0.4 sq m and the force 0.4 tonne per wheel. For the four wheels, it becomes one and a half tons, and for 2m of water, it becomes 2 tons per sq m.
Be careful, water that has fallen only 0.4m reached a speed of 3.2 km/h and can sweep your car off a road bridge.
When the side…