Pedestrian dead after being hit by car near Tahuna, Waikato

A person has died after being hit by a car on SH26 at Tahuna, north of Morrinsville, about 11.40pm on Tuesday. Photo / File

A person has died while walking along a stretch of highway in the Waikato.

Waikato police Senior Sergeant Pete Simpson said the person died after being hit by a car on State Highway 26 near Tahuna about 11.40pm yesterday.

The serious crash unit was investigating the circumstances of the crash.

And given today's wet weather, Simpson reminded motorists to drive to the conditions after police had already been called to several minor crashes around the district.

He said the cause of them appeared to be people not taking into account their stopping distances in light of the rain which is forecast to continue until at least lunchtime.

"People need to drive to the conditions," Simpson said. "It's raining and the road is slippery and wet and stopping distances are longer than the dry so they just need to be careful.

"There have been several minor crashes so far this morning mainly due to the rain and the roads being wet after being dry for so long and gives it a greasy surface."

NZ Transport Agency transport system manager Rob Campbell has previously labelled the greasy road surface "summer ice".

"After an extended run of warm, dry summer days like we've had, any rain can result in slippery road surfaces, otherwise known as summer ice," he said last month.

"Even a very small amount of rain can make the roads very slippery. In fact, it can be more hazardous than heavy rain because grime and exhaust particles that have built up on the road take longer to be washed away.

IT'S RAINING, IT'S POURING 🌧🌧 Police are urging motorists to take extra care on the roads today with the heavy rain....

Posted by Waikato Police on Tuesday, 3 March 2020

"The combination of light rain and summer grime creates a slippery film on the road."

Summer ice was believed responsible for at least one of the four fatal crashes in the Waikato last month which claimed 5 lives, including a woman at Tahuna.

SUMMER ICE DANGER

• Slow down,
• Allow further room for stopping distances,
• Make sure tyres have correct air pressure and tread,