When it rains and water flows down an inclined street, ripples may form that are carried along with the current. Here's a picture with an example of what I'm talking about: http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6226/6271008496_ba5153bc73.jpg

I'd like to know what the fluid mechanical mechanism is for the formation of these waves. A quick google search reveals that they've been identified in some scientific literature as "rain waves" (if you have a jstor subscription you can see http://www.jstor.org/stable/4297089?seq=1) but I've only been able to find phenomenological descriptions of their properties without any details of the physics giving rise to them. In particular, I'm curious if people think that the surface on which the water is flowing must have a particular texture in order to give rise to the waves.