Steep downgrades are known to increase accident rates yet little is published on how well vehicles brake and handle on steep downgrades. Braking tests were completed on grades of; 1, 7 13, 21 and 28 percent. The tested surfaces were asphalt, in both dry and wet conditions, with a car and a utility vehicle, with and without ABS brakes. The 13 percent grade was grooved and the test sequence repeated.The braking tests found a non-linear decreasing relationship between the average coefficient of friction or drag factor and downgrade.Pavement grooving on the 13 percent grade of a local road has eliminated the crash occurances for a two-year period. Testing showed that grooving also improved vehicle handling.
Vehicle Braking on Steep Down Grades: Field Experiment Results
Sae Technical Papers
International Congress & Exposition ; 1998
1998-02-23
Conference paper
English
Vehicle Braking on Steep Down Grades: Field Experiment Results
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