Improvement in Stopping Ability Of Trucks in Use on the Highway

RESULTS of tests conducted on more than 5400 vehicles show that since 1942 there has been considerable improvement in the brake performance of all types of motor vehicles using our highways. A gap existing between the levels of performance of commercial vehicles and passenger cars has been reduced. However, through adequate brake maintenance, the performance of commercial vehicles still can be improved appreciably, and the gap between the performance of trucks and passenger cars can be narrowed still further.

This paper shows the magnitude of past improvement, the current levels of brake performance, and how the brake performance of commercial vehicles can be further improved through maintenance.