Braking and Stopping Distance

The essentials

This topic distinguishes the distance travelled during the driver’s reaction time, the braking distance and the total stopping distance. It shows how speed, road surface and vehicle condition can affect the space required to stop.

What to remember

Total stopping distance consists of the distance travelled during the driver’s reaction and the braking distance. As speed increases, braking distance generally increases non-linearly, and it becomes longer on wet or icy roads or with poor tyres. Therefore, a distance that is sufficient at low speed may be dangerous at higher speed.

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Educational material; not a substitute for the current official rules.

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