Final answer:
When driving on a curve, a vehicle tends to continue moving straight due to inertia, causing what is felt as centrifugal force. A banked curve helps to mitigate this effect by providing a force that counteracts this inertia and assists with the turn.
Step-by-step explanation:
When you are driving on a curve, your vehicle will tend to go in a direction tangential to the curve due to inertia. This phenomenon is observed because of Newton's first law, which states that an object in motion will stay in motion with the same speed and direction unless acted upon by an unbalanced force. In the context of driving, this inertia creates a sensation of being pushed outwards from the curve, an experience often attributed to what is called centrifugal force. However, this force is not a true force, but rather a result of the non-inertial frame of reference of the moving vehicle.
On a banked curve, the road is sloped in a way that assists the vehicle in negotiating the curve. The banking of the curve can reduce the feeling of being thrown to the side because the banked surface provides a component of force that counteracts the inertia, keeping the vehicle more securely on its curved path. The optimal scenario occurs when a curve is banked to match your car's speed effectively, allowing for a seamless turn with no lateral force felt by the passengers.