What is the stopping distance?

The braking distance is the distance to which the vehicle will move from the beginning of the brake system to its full stop in the direction of its initial movement. It is important not to confuse this concept with the notion of a stopover. The stopping distance is the distance that the vehicle will pass from the moment when the driver recognizes the need for braking and until the vehicle stops driving. That is, to the first definition we add the time spent by the driver to react, and the time of the brake system activation, and we get the second. Both of these concepts are inextricably tied to any land vehicle that has a braking mechanism.

The stopping distance depends on a large number of factors. For example, for a car these factors will be:

• Parameters of the road surface (primer, asphalt, concrete);

• The quality and degree of deterioration of the tread (summer tires in winter will prolong the way to the nearest obstacle, and the winter in summer will bring out in the pool for aquaplaning and there);

• Weather conditions (dry, rain, snow);

• The condition of the brakes themselves (whether the pads are good, whether the hydraulics flow, etc.);

• The presence or absence of an anti - lock system (ABS prevents the wheel from locking and allows you to use frictional force more effectively and retain control over the control);

• The degree of congestion of the car (the heavier the transport, the greater inertia it has);

• Initial speed (the most important factor, the length of the braking distance depends directly on the square of the speed of the car).

As is clear from the above, the stopping distance is a variable quantity, the empirical and theoretical approach can determine it very inaccurately. Usually, along the length of the path, the initial speed of the vehicle is calculated when an accident is committed. For the driver, on the contrary, it is important to know how much will slow down his car at this speed.

The braking distance of a motorcycle is usually greater than that of a car, because, firstly, it has two wheels less, that is, the contact point of the wheels with the road is small, and secondly, there are two brakes, front and rear. And both have their own specifics of application and can not just be "braked on the floor." When making emergency braking, controlling a motorcycle is much more difficult than a car, and most of the driver's reflexes will be occupied with the question: "How not to get killed?", And not "How to stop sooner?". This does not mean that a motorcyclist will necessarily crush a pedestrian, in most cases he will just drive around.

The brake way of a train is generally a separate topic. All rail vehicles can move either forward or backward, so there will be no drifts or overturns. The driver does not need to control the direction of movement, only the braking system. At the same time, the friction coefficient here is low, the mass is large and the distance that the rail track will travel to a complete stop, often more than one kilometer. Often the underestimation of this trait characteristic leads to tragedy.

It is important to remember that the driver of any vehicle must choose the safe speed of his movement. It is better to clearly understand what will be the stopping distance, than to look after how it is measured.