Commercial drivers are required by law to ensure their brakes are in working order and properly adjusted. The mark-and-measure method is considered the only reliable means of measuring brake stroke.
It takes a robust braking system to bring 80,000 lb. (36,000 kg) of moving tractor-trailer to a halt. And half of that system sits on a trailer, about 45 feet (about 13.5 meters) behind the driver.