Biggest Spike in Traffic Deaths in 50 Years? Blame Apps • Hacker News Board

Re: Biggest Spike in Traffic Deaths in 50 Years? Blame Apps

#241

Post by [deleted] » Wed, Nov 16, 2016, 6:42 PM UTC

ajmurmann wrote: post #69

will_brown wrote: post #58

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Whether I am running or driving if I see a driver making dangerous u-turns or 3-point turns as of late it is always an Uber driver. I always joke on a run it's normal to almost be hit by cars multiple time and typically it is by the same Uber driver. Just last night I am running thru a crosswalk (w/signal) and a car makes a left into the crosswalk almost hitting the first time, this street has no sidewalk so I am run…

Or maybe we could give drivers tickets for that kinda stuff instead of almost exclusively giving tickets for speeding which I especially on the freeway believe to be a comparatively small problem.

[deleted]

Re: Biggest Spike in Traffic Deaths in 50 Years? Blame Apps

#242

Post by clifanatic » Wed, Nov 16, 2016, 6:46 PM UTC

eternalban wrote: post #226

apsec112 wrote: post #65

Headline: "Blame Apps" Evidence given in the article: - "Safety experts say" that it's true. The experts are not named or quoted. No evidence or reasoning is given to support the claim. - Highway fatalities are up this year. However, they're still significantly down from 2007, when the iPhone was first introduced. Mobile has been booming for almost a decade - if we should "blame apps", why hasn't it been a concern be…

How is it possible you haven't noted that these devices affect a subset of population in a manner that can be fairly described as 'mesmerized'? "going 115 mph" on Snapchat. Isn't the mere fact that someone would feel compelled to chat at 115 mph enough? I remember my younger days when I edged closed to that number going from NYC to Troy on 95 and even adjusting the tune or lighting a cig was a very deliberate operati…

> I remember my younger days when I edged closed to that number

But you didn't die, so it must be Snapchat.

Re: Biggest Spike in Traffic Deaths in 50 Years? Blame Apps

#243

Post by usrusr » Wed, Nov 16, 2016, 7:00 PM UTC

elcct wrote: post #221

usrusr wrote: post #155

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> They obviously have agenda. Could a desire for safe roads be one? Drivers on smartphones kill.

Drivers that are not fit to drive kill. In this case drivers that cannot pay attention to the road. Smartphones have nothing to do with that.

The lure of the smartphone is pushing a number of drivers over the threshold of insufficient attention. They would be less distracted without.

It's not like drivers had an individually fixed amount of distraction that they would distribute on whatever media at hand, it's the attention that is limited and far too many drivers don't allocate it correctly when their phone is around. Unfortunately, using a smartphone while driving is far more common than using the newspaper while driving has ever been. This has everything to do with the difference between smartphones and newspapers.

Re: Biggest Spike in Traffic Deaths in 50 Years? Blame Apps

#244

Post by eternalban » Wed, Nov 16, 2016, 7:04 PM UTC

clifanatic wrote: post #242

eternalban wrote: post #226

Earlier quoted context omitted.

How is it possible you haven't noted that these devices affect a subset of population in a manner that can be fairly described as 'mesmerized'? "going 115 mph" on Snapchat. Isn't the mere fact that someone would feel compelled to chat at 115 mph enough? I remember my younger days when I edged closed to that number going from NYC to Troy on 95 and even adjusting the tune or lighting a cig was a very deliberate operati…

> I remember my younger days when I edged closed to that number But you didn't die, so it must be Snapchat.

I was entirely focused on the machine and the road.

Re: Biggest Spike in Traffic Deaths in 50 Years? Blame Apps

#245

Post by frakr » Wed, Nov 16, 2016, 7:07 PM UTC

hueving wrote: post #78

frakr wrote: post #68

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's also a bit worrisome that the driver apps only give the driver ~30 seconds to accept a new ride request. The requests almost always come in while they are driving. Drivers are forced to pay attention to their phone and try to figure out if they want to accept the ride, all while driving. It's incredibly distracting and they never have enough time to pull over and safely accept the request. This puts the driver a…

Well the arbitrary response time is driven by users requesting rides. If Uber takes that long to match me with a driver, I assume the app is busted and I switch to Lyft.

The expectations of the users are supposed to be managed by the creators of the apps. Right now, in my opinion, they are making an unacceptably dangerous compromise in driver safety for a very minor increase in customer convenience.

Re: Biggest Spike in Traffic Deaths in 50 Years? Blame Apps

#246

Post by flukus » Wed, Nov 16, 2016, 9:40 PM UTC

Thimothy wrote: post #220

flukus wrote: post #163

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I agree the tesla system is pretty bad, but software needs to be updatable. How many exploits do you think your 2005 land rover has?

Does it really matter if the vehicle is not connected to the Internet in any way? I mean, if an attacker has physical access to the insides of your car, all bets are off and is now his vehicle.

They might not have the internet (although some do via various methods) but most will have Bluetooth which could kill the console in the best case. There has been cases of people getting access to things like the door locks and the brake system.

Remember it's not just the internet that makes you susceptible, it's any network.

Re: Biggest Spike in Traffic Deaths in 50 Years? Blame Apps

#247

Post by scelerat » Wed, Nov 16, 2016, 10:13 PM UTC

JauntyHatAngle wrote: post #18

toomuchtodo wrote: post #10

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'm surprised people are allowed to use their phones at all; there is a study showing talking on a hands free causes the same attention impairment level as someone under the influence of alcohol.

We should also ban people talking to their passengers.

We do, for professional drivers. Next time you're on a bus, look around; there's usually a sign saying something like "please don't make conversation with the driver." This isn't because municipalities want their drivers to be lonely! It is because carrying on a conversation while driving is distracting.

Re: Biggest Spike in Traffic Deaths in 50 Years? Blame Apps

#248

Post by DeAndre222 » Wed, Nov 16, 2016, 11:21 PM UTC

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Re: Biggest Spike in Traffic Deaths in 50 Years? Blame Apps

#249

Post by brohoolio » Thu, Nov 17, 2016, 5:32 PM UTC

Kiro wrote: post #175

brohoolio wrote: post #124

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's true. I see so many people looking down now at their phones while driving. I'm not sure why it's acceptable now, but it's commonplace. I counted at least 10 drivers on my 12 minute commute yesterday. The scariest one was someone coming in the opposite direction who didn't look up in the 5 seconds I was driving past him. It would have been easy for him to drift into a head on collision.

What is true? You're presenting anecdotal evidence. It doesn't give proof to the headline OP is disputing.

How many days in a row do I need to see this anecdotal evidence for it to be valid? At this point I'm up to probably a year solid of seeing folks fiddle with their phone instead of watching where they drive on my twelve minute commute.

Re: Biggest Spike in Traffic Deaths in 50 Years? Blame Apps

#250

Post by Kiro » Thu, Nov 17, 2016, 7:45 PM UTC

brohoolio wrote: post #249

Kiro wrote: post #175

Earlier quoted context omitted.

What is true? You're presenting anecdotal evidence. It doesn't give proof to the headline OP is disputing.

How many days in a row do I need to see this anecdotal evidence for it to be valid? At this point I'm up to probably a year solid of seeing folks fiddle with their phone instead of watching where they drive on my twelve minute commute.

I think you're exaggerating.