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Effects of large vehicles on pedestrian and pedal-cyclist injury severity

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Re: Effects of large vehicles on pedestrian and pedal-cyclist injury severity

#131

Post by Prcmaker »

saiya-jin wrote: post #119
Prcmaker wrote: post #108

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I've had an entire Mazda 2 hidden from view in a roundabout, by the A-pillar and associated airbag of a VE commodore. Pedestrians and bicycles required much more effort to see in that car than any other I've ever driven.

A good rule of thumb is, if you are in dense complex traffic, to move your head around a bit when looking out and in the mirrors. Better coverage of dead angle in side mirrors, adding a bit more 3D into perspective. Its sort of defensive driving - expect troubles, idiotic clueless drivers, people having heart attack or just turning head to yelling kid on backseat / nice lady walking nearby. Can't save it all but defi…

The density or complexity of traffic really has nothing to do with whether a car has been designed in such a way that it significantly impedes vision where it is most critical. In this case, a quiet roundabout with one other car almost directly in front.

Re: Effects of large vehicles on pedestrian and pedal-cyclist injury severity

#132

Post by rodolphoarruda »

I would like to see a similar study with data about the type of medicine drivers were on when they struck pedestrians/cyclists. I've always got the impression that there is more people driving under the influence of those drugs than alcohol.

Re: Effects of large vehicles on pedestrian and pedal-cyclist injury severity

#133

Post by wiredfool »

ehaliewicz2 wrote: post #78
donw wrote: post #28

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The big problem -- pun intended -- is that vehicles are de facto required by law to be huge. Imagine if we had cars that were built like cars from the 80s -- smaller, lightweight, tons of visibility, minimal equipment -- but with modern engine technology and a few of the electronics that don't add much weight, but add a ton of functionality (like 360-degree cameras). I'll take the road noise, less interior comfort, a…

My 2021 miata isn't really much larger than a 1989 miata.

It weighs 300lbs more, or 15%.

Re: Effects of large vehicles on pedestrian and pedal-cyclist injury severity

#134

Post by timellis-smith »

gadders wrote: post #126
timellis-smith wrote: post #81

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I live in the UK, and the last car I bought was a SEAT Ibiza with a 3 cylinder 1 litre engine. I get 4.5l/100km or 52 mpg on long trips. 98% of the time my engine does under 2500 rpm. I have absolutely no need of anything bigger and my car has all the comforts I require. I was also able to buy it for cash. I've never quite understood the desire to own a large car with all its concomitant costs.

How large is your family?

Just one kid.

To be clear we do own another car which is an old Skoda Octavia Greenline also bought for cash. Its efficiency is pretty incredible even if it is a 'dirty diesel'.

Re: Effects of large vehicles on pedestrian and pedal-cyclist injury severity

#135

Post by koheripbal »

goethes_kind wrote: post #127
globular-toast wrote: post #125

Earlier quoted context omitted.

A VW Golf from the 70s could fit two adults and three children. Or you could rent the van when you really need it. The trouble is when a society accepts non-sustainable solutions it's very difficult to go back to anything remotely sustainable as any technological progress is always expected to deliver "more". It also leads to people thinking their ridiculous lifestyles are baseline necessity when, in fact, they could…

Exactly. Without judging the OP (I am also looking at buying a van (although I would not drive it regularly in the city)) it is a matter of luxury rather than necessity.

With three kids and car seats/boosters, there is no option. You need a minivan or SUV.

Re: Effects of large vehicles on pedestrian and pedal-cyclist injury severity

#136

Post by hawski »

froh wrote: post #121
hawski wrote: post #105

Earlier quoted context omitted.

At the same time Toyota Aygo is no longer produced. There is now a Toyota Aygo X - a crossover/mini-suv. From what I have read companies stopped producing most of those smallest cars, because to make good margins within what is required by law in terms of safety and CO2 emissions it does not make much sense to produce small cheap cars anymore.

where did you hear that from? The A-Segment is well alive and thriving: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A-segment What I see instead is very small electric vehicles entering the market from new manufacturers --- the market entry hurdle was not the vehicle safety, it was mastering the EURO-6,7,8 and California environmental norms with such a small engine. I'd love to get one of those, or their van equivalents, rather, a…

Toyota Aygo is no longer produced. Replaced by Aygo X - a somewhat bigger car.

Renault Twingo is produced, but is not offered in some countries (I know about UK and Poland).

Peugeot 108 is no longer produced and AFAIU a successor was cancelled. Same thing for sibling Citroen C1. Aygo was also a sibling model.

Suzuki Ignis is a crossover now.

Skoda Citigo is no longer produced. Its sibling model VW Up is still produced, but other sibling Seat Mii is not.

Smart is a bit in a class of its own. It is not cheap though. Toyota had iQ in this class - it is no longer produced.

That leaves us with Hyundai i10 and its sibling Kia Picanto, Fiat Panda which is just a bit bigger then usual in the class, Fiat 500, aforementioned VW Up and Mitsubishi Mirage (also called Space Star in some countries). For me this is a sign of the class being less represented. I think it can go in other direction when electric cars will finally be cheaper, but it will not happen for a couple of years.

Re: Effects of large vehicles on pedestrian and pedal-cyclist injury severity

#137

Post by globular-toast »

koheripbal wrote: post #135
goethes_kind wrote: post #127

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Exactly. Without judging the OP (I am also looking at buying a van (although I would not drive it regularly in the city)) it is a matter of luxury rather than necessity.

With three kids and car seats/boosters, there is no option. You need a minivan or SUV.

So you're saying all those five-seater cars that are being made are for seating five adults but if you have children you need a van?

Re: Effects of large vehicles on pedestrian and pedal-cyclist injury severity

#138

Post by david-gpu »

kqr wrote: post #65
emmelaich wrote: post #6

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Agree with your speculation. Here's another one. Even WHEN THE DRIVER sees you, some subconsciously ignore you. I'v had people look straight at me, keep driving then looking shocked when they finally realise and hit the brakes. I can only surmise they perceive traffic in terms of threats. When you're in a bigger car, threats are reduced.

At one point when biking to work I stopped at an intersection and filtered to the front. The head vehicle was a huge yellow thing built for construction work. I turned my head to see if I could see the driver (then at least he would have a chance of seeing me) and you know what he did? He understood what I was doing and pointed straight at me to indicate he had noticed me. This is something I've started doing when I'…

I'm in my 40s, I've never had a car, and the only thing that makes me feel somewhat safe when I cross in front of a vehicle is making eye contact with the driver, which is sometimes difficult with the prevalence of tinted windows.

In my experience, drivers look for other cars, not for pedestrians. We are not a danger to them, so they subconsciously filter us out, as we are not a threat to them.

To make things worse, in North America traffic rules are particularly hostile to pedestrians, allowing things such as right turns on red. Which is to say, as a pedestrian I am naturally not allowed to cross the street when the light is red for me, but for some unclear reason, if I were to be driving a 2-ton vehicle then somehow it is no longer considered dangerous for me to ignore the same red light. Bonkers.

Re: Effects of large vehicles on pedestrian and pedal-cyclist injury severity

#139

Post by david-gpu »

Chris2048 wrote: post #129
analog31 wrote: post #49

Earlier quoted context omitted.

There's that famous video of people dancing, where a person in a gorilla suit enters and leaves the action, and at the end, people don't remember seeing the gorilla. I think drivers are creatures of habit, especially in heavy traffic on a familiar route such as their daily work commute. They are not really in complete control of their cars -- certainly if traffic is heavy enough that nobody is following at a safe dis…

According to the Gorilla study: > failure to attend to it while engaged in the difficult task of counting passes of the ball I'm not sure how this applies to commuting, except when the driver is attentively looking at other cars.

It applies because drivers tend to look for other cars, which are a threat to them, while filtering out pedestrians and bicycles. It is very noticeable as a pedestrian, e.g. when a driver enters a road through a right turn and only looks left to avoid incoming traffic, ignoring the possibility of a pedestrian coming from their right.

Re: Effects of large vehicles on pedestrian and pedal-cyclist injury severity

#140

Post by jccalhoun »

Last summer someone pulled out in front of me and totaled my Honda Fit. I would have loved to replace it with a new one but they don't sell them in North America any more. In the 90s I had a small Nissan truck (apparently it is called a Hardbody? The manual just said "nissan truck") You can't buy any truck anywhere near as small as that any more. I also had a Dodge Dakota at one point and you can't even really find a truck that small any more.

I was secretly hoping that the high gas prices would encourage auto makers to reintroduce some smaller cars but it seems like supply chain issues have resulted in them only making higher end cars since they can make more money off of them.

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