Originally Posted by
Hot Potato
There are road bikes that can fit fenders with skinny tires, or wider tires without fenders, but not many road bikes that can handle wider tires and fenders. Your typical road bike with caliper brakes is going to max out at 28 mm tires, fenders questionable. Exceptions exist.
Be aware of differences in the tires. Road bikes sometimes don't have much clearance. On my racer, the largest size I can consistently mount is 23. Some 25's fit, some don't.
Based on the description of your needs, I think that a cyclocross or touring bike would be the ticket. FWIW, I commute on 23's and there is a lot of debris on the road. The crash you experienced probably would have occurred with slightly wider tires. A few mm does make a difference, but it's not that much.