Stopping distance of vehicles: When brakes are applied to a moving vehicle,the distance it travels before stopping is called stopping distance. It is an important factor for road safety and depends on the initial velocity $(v_0)$ and the braking capacity,or deceleration,$-a$ that is caused by the braking. Derive an expression for stopping distance of a vehicle in terms of $v_0$ and $a$.

Vedclass pdf generator app on play store
Vedclass iOS app on app store
(N/A) Let the distance travelled by the vehicle before it stops be $d_{s}$.
Using the third equation of motion,$v^{2} = v_{0}^{2} + 2ax$,where $v$ is the final velocity,$v_{0}$ is the initial velocity,$a$ is the acceleration (which is negative in this case,i.e.,$-a$),and $x$ is the displacement.
At the point where the vehicle stops,the final velocity $v = 0$.
Substituting these values into the equation: $0^{2} = v_{0}^{2} + 2(-a)d_{s}$.
Rearranging the terms to solve for $d_{s}$:
$2ad_{s} = v_{0}^{2}$
$d_{s} = \frac{v_{0}^{2}}{2a}$.
Thus,the stopping distance is directly proportional to the square of the initial velocity $(d_{s} \propto v_{0}^{2})$.

Explore More

Similar Questions

$A$ body is moving along a straight line with initial velocity $v_0$. Its acceleration $a$ is constant. After $t$ seconds,its velocity becomes $v$. The average velocity of the body over the given time interval is

The velocity of a bullet is reduced from $200\; m/s$ to $100\; m/s$ while travelling through a wooden block of thickness $10\; cm$. The retardation,assuming it to be uniform,will be ........... $\times 10^4\; m/s^2$.

Difficult
View Solution

$A$ graph between the square of the velocity of a particle and the distance $s$ moved by the particle is shown in the figure. The acceleration of the particle is $...........m/s^2$.

$A$ particle is moving in a straight line and passes through a point $O$ with a velocity of $6\;m/s$. The particle moves with a constant retardation of $2\;m/s^2$ for $4\;s$ and thereafter moves with constant velocity. How long after leaving $O$ does the particle return to $O$?

Difficult
View Solution

An electron starting from rest has a velocity that increases linearly with time,given by $v = kt$,where $k = 2 \, m/s^2$. The distance travelled in the first $3 \, s$ will be ........... $m$.

Vedclass Products

For Students

Vedclass Test Series

Mock tests in real JEE/NEET style with performance analysis. 5-day free trial.

Start Free Trial
For Teachers

Exam Paper Generator

Generate Set A/B/C/D exam papers from 7.5L+ questions in 2 minutes. 3 chapters free.

Try Free
For Institutes

Online Exam Module

Live online exams with unlimited students, 360° analytics & white-label branding.

See Demo