A closer look
In a frantic moment of panic, stomping wildly on the floorboard should logically result in stopping rather than accelerating into a brick wall. Designers deliberately made the brake pedal significantly larger and often positioned it slightly closer to the driver than the accelerator. This ergonomic imbalance ensures that if your foot slips or you slam down blindly in an emergency, you are far more likely to smash the brakes. It's a fundamental idiot-proofing mechanism built right into the geometry of the footwell.
