> Cars can stop in quite a short distance.

"Quite a short distance" is doing a lot of lifting. It's been a while since I've been to driver's school, but I remember them making a point of how long it could take to stop, and how your senses could trick you to the contrary. Especially at highway speeds.

I can personally recall a couple (fortunately low stakes) situations where I had to change lanes to avoid an obstacle that I was pretty certain I would hit if I had to stop.

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terribleperson 4 days ago | parent [-]

At the driving school I attended, they had us accelerate to 50 mph and then slam on the brakes so we'd have a feel for the distance (and the feel).

While it's true they don't stop instantaneously at highway speeds, cars shouldn't be driving highway speeds when a pedestrian suddenly being in front of you is a realistic risk.

	▲	AnIrishDuck 4 days ago \| parent [-]
		What if the obstacle is not a person? What if something falls off a truck in front of the vehicle? What if wildlife spontaneously decides to cross the road (a common occurrence where I live)? I don't think these problems can just be assumed away.