How does vehicle weight affect braking efficiency?

The correct choice highlights the relationship between vehicle weight and stopping distance. Heavier loads inherently require more force to bring them to a stop due to the physics of motion. This is in accordance with Newton's second law of motion, which states that an object's acceleration (or deceleration, in this case) is directly proportional to the net force acting on it and inversely proportional to its mass.

When a vehicle is loaded with significant weight, the additional mass affects how effectively the brakes can decelerate the vehicle. The more weight there is, the greater the momentum the vehicle has, which means that more braking force is required to achieve the same rate of deceleration as a lighter vehicle. As a result, this translates into an increased stopping distance, as it takes longer for the brakes to reduce the speed of a heavier vehicle to zero.

In contrast, lighter vehicles benefit from a decreased stopping distance because they possess less momentum when in motion, allowing the brakes to stop the vehicle more quickly. Weight does play a crucial role in braking efficiency, with the emphasis on how it contributes to the distance required to come to a complete stop.