What is the purpose of brake lights on a vehicle?

The purpose of brake lights is to alert drivers behind you that you are slowing down or stopping. When you apply the brakes, the brake lights illuminate, providing a clear signal to vehicles following you. This is crucial for maintaining safe distances and preventing rear-end collisions. The activation of brake lights not only communicates your actions to other drivers but also helps create a predictable flow of traffic, allowing them to respond appropriately by either slowing down or preparing to stop.

The other options do not accurately represent the function of brake lights. While it’s important for vehicles to be visible at night, this task is primarily served by standard taillights rather than brake lights. Indicating a driver to speed up is contrary to the safety intent of brake lights, which is to signal deceleration. Likewise, signaling a malfunction would be the role of warning lights or indicators, not the brake lights themselves.