randya
...you go after the highest risk behaviors. Cyclists don't kill 42,000 people a year in the US, motorists do. Why is the level of cognitive dissonance so high on this issue?
discuss
discuss
Public Safety Means...
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donnamb
Not enough LEOs ride bikes themselves. If they did, they would have a different perception and enforce the laws accordingly.
noisebeam
This is a driving safety issue. I've spent more hours behind a car wheel in the last week than in the previous couple months. The bad, dangerous and reckless driving is even more apparent from that angle than from a bicycle. From a bicycle you interact with only the very nearest motorists, from a car those nearest increase in number, speeds are greater, situations unfold faster, the rude/careless drivers seem even greater in number. I saw more close calls in this last week than in the previous months. (These previous two sentences are an attempt to describe what I observed, but miss the mark in clarity.)
The 42k is primarily motorists killing each other. It's a well known problem, not enough people care, but some do and by far the most, if not nearly all, efforts are targeting the primary causes.
Al
The 42k is primarily motorists killing each other. It's a well known problem, not enough people care, but some do and by far the most, if not nearly all, efforts are targeting the primary causes.
Al
gosmsgo
Our local state senator was arrested this week for a DWI after he crashed his car into TWO other cars.
He is in a wheelchair because OF AN AUTOMOBILE CRASH WHEN HE WAS 16.
Smart fella....I guess he wants all the citizens to be in a wheelchair like him??!!??!! I'm not sure what his motivation is but lets hope he never drives again.
He is in a wheelchair because OF AN AUTOMOBILE CRASH WHEN HE WAS 16.
Smart fella....I guess he wants all the citizens to be in a wheelchair like him??!!??!! I'm not sure what his motivation is but lets hope he never drives again.
Allister
In the words of those great philosophers, Cake - 'We've got to keep this traffic moving and accept a little sin'
Allister
This is a driving safety issue. I've spent more hours behind a car wheel in the last week than in the previous couple months. The bad, dangerous and reckless driving is even more apparent from that angle than from a bicycle. From a bicycle you interact with only the very nearest motorists, from a car those nearest increase in number, speeds are greater, situations unfold faster, the rude/careless drivers seem even greater in number.
Yeah. You get two very different views of traffic from either a bike or a car.
From the bike you see lots of cars passing, but you don't see them for very long (by and large), so you get to see how many drivers do dopey things at any one point.
From the car, you see much fewer, but you tend to stay near the same vehicles for a lot longer, so you get to see how often individual drivers do dopey things.
Neither view paints a particularly pretty picture.
Yeah. You get two very different views of traffic from either a bike or a car.
From the bike you see lots of cars passing, but you don't see them for very long (by and large), so you get to see how many drivers do dopey things at any one point.
From the car, you see much fewer, but you tend to stay near the same vehicles for a lot longer, so you get to see how often individual drivers do dopey things.
Neither view paints a particularly pretty picture.
zeytoun
heehhheee, nice observation Allister.
-=Łem in Pa=-
Cars are to be hated for what they have done to society as much as the
jerks that drive them into stuff to inflict their importance on things/people, but its
just like anything else....when its done for a long enuff period of time it
becomes acceptable or the norm. Being in a hurry is the norm now. Even
though it isnt legal on paper, it is legal in action. Go figure.
jerks that drive them into stuff to inflict their importance on things/people, but its
just like anything else....when its done for a long enuff period of time it
becomes acceptable or the norm. Being in a hurry is the norm now. Even
though it isnt legal on paper, it is legal in action. Go figure.
John E
Cars are to be hated for what they have done to society as much as the
jerks that drive them into stuff to inflict their importance on things/people, but its
just like anything else....when its done for a long enuff period of time it
becomes acceptable or the norm. Being in a hurry is the norm now. Even
though it isnt legal on paper, it is legal in action. Go figure.
At one time drunk driving and smoking were accepted social norms, but MADD, ANR, and other organizations have greatly altered public attitudes. What we desperately need now is a concerted effort to render aggressive, fatigued, inattentive, distracted, and otherwise sociopathic motoring socially unacceptable. It starts with education and with tough legal accountability.
jerks that drive them into stuff to inflict their importance on things/people, but its
just like anything else....when its done for a long enuff period of time it
becomes acceptable or the norm. Being in a hurry is the norm now. Even
though it isnt legal on paper, it is legal in action. Go figure.
At one time drunk driving and smoking were accepted social norms, but MADD, ANR, and other organizations have greatly altered public attitudes. What we desperately need now is a concerted effort to render aggressive, fatigued, inattentive, distracted, and otherwise sociopathic motoring socially unacceptable. It starts with education and with tough legal accountability.
genec
At one time drunk driving and smoking were accepted social norms, but MADD, ANR, and other organizations have greatly altered public attitudes. What we desperately need now is a concerted effort to render aggressive, fatigued, inattentive, distracted, and otherwise sociopathic motoring socially unacceptable. It starts with education and with tough legal accountability.
+1000
+1000
noisebeam
What we desperately need now is a concerted effort to render aggressive, fatigued, inattentive, distracted, and otherwise sociopathic motoring socially unacceptable. It starts with education and with tough legal accountability.
There seems to be a growing effort to get this more attention. This attention is triggered by texting and cell phones, but as those issues are raised the discussion moves toward distracted driving as a whole. I see newspaper article about such at least 2-3x/mo, for example like this:
http://www.azcentral.com/arizonarepublic/arizonaliving/articles/1025texting1025.html
Likewise, road rage (aggressive driving) is a hot topic for many and regularly is commented on in the news, with some efforts to address, but mainly through "how to avoid, or not get involved in RR" vs. enforcement.
Both of these are only at the early stages, mainly at the limited awareness stage, much more should be done.
Join forces to push for improved driving, but don't make it a cycling issue only, make it a driving issue, one that affects all road users. 42k killed/75k seriously injured means a lot more to the average person than 800 cyclists killed.
Article today: Intersection averages one crash per week
http://www.eastvalleytribune.com/story/100515
"On top of the left-turn mistakes, drivers are also not paying enough attention to what they’re doing. And there’s little police can do about that, Marino said.
“There’s really nothing we can do to make people pay attention,” he said. “With cell phones and everything else that people are trying to do in a vehicle, all we can do it stress: Please stop taking chances.”"
Al
There seems to be a growing effort to get this more attention. This attention is triggered by texting and cell phones, but as those issues are raised the discussion moves toward distracted driving as a whole. I see newspaper article about such at least 2-3x/mo, for example like this:
http://www.azcentral.com/arizonarepublic/arizonaliving/articles/1025texting1025.html
Likewise, road rage (aggressive driving) is a hot topic for many and regularly is commented on in the news, with some efforts to address, but mainly through "how to avoid, or not get involved in RR" vs. enforcement.
Both of these are only at the early stages, mainly at the limited awareness stage, much more should be done.
Join forces to push for improved driving, but don't make it a cycling issue only, make it a driving issue, one that affects all road users. 42k killed/75k seriously injured means a lot more to the average person than 800 cyclists killed.
Article today: Intersection averages one crash per week
http://www.eastvalleytribune.com/story/100515
"On top of the left-turn mistakes, drivers are also not paying enough attention to what they’re doing. And there’s little police can do about that, Marino said.
“There’s really nothing we can do to make people pay attention,” he said. “With cell phones and everything else that people are trying to do in a vehicle, all we can do it stress: Please stop taking chances.”"
Al
genec
The interesting thing is that eventually the driver will be taken out of the picture... at least that is what some scientists are telling us. The DARPA programs for self driving vehicles is proceeding and large vehicles have been prototyped that can self drive.
Projections are that in 15-20 years this technology will be in the family car.
At that point "paying attention" and all the other behaviour that is driver/mood related, should go by the wayside.
Of course then we'll have the issue of robot cars gone crazy (or "blue screen of death" may actually be an apt description... )
Projections are that in 15-20 years this technology will be in the family car.
At that point "paying attention" and all the other behaviour that is driver/mood related, should go by the wayside.
Of course then we'll have the issue of robot cars gone crazy (or "blue screen of death" may actually be an apt description... )
noisebeam
Projections are that in 15-20 years this technology will be in the family car.
Which means that the capability will be there in implement in production in 15-20, not that all new cars will have it, nor will all existing cars suddenly acquire it. I'd add another 15yrs. at least (of course a sudden rise in oil prices may hasten the obsolesce of the current type of vehicles on the road) to that for wide spread implementation. Also early implementation will be freeway type road/conditions first.
Al
Which means that the capability will be there in implement in production in 15-20, not that all new cars will have it, nor will all existing cars suddenly acquire it. I'd add another 15yrs. at least (of course a sudden rise in oil prices may hasten the obsolesce of the current type of vehicles on the road) to that for wide spread implementation. Also early implementation will be freeway type road/conditions first.
Al
richardmasoner
Our local state senator was arrested this week for a DWI after he crashed his car into TWO other cars.
Ahh, one of those rare 1% of motorists who break the law!
That reminds me of former U.S. Representative Bill Janklow from South Dakota. He drives 70 mph through corn fields and runs stop signs. He killed motorcyclist Randy Scott at a rural intersection. He bragged to the state legislature that he habitually speeds, though he told the court at his manslaughter hearing a different story. In spite of his three prior accidents and 12 speeding violations, this scofflaw continues to drive and practice law.
Ahh, one of those rare 1% of motorists who break the law!
That reminds me of former U.S. Representative Bill Janklow from South Dakota. He drives 70 mph through corn fields and runs stop signs. He killed motorcyclist Randy Scott at a rural intersection. He bragged to the state legislature that he habitually speeds, though he told the court at his manslaughter hearing a different story. In spite of his three prior accidents and 12 speeding violations, this scofflaw continues to drive and practice law.
sbhikes
It's maddening. The street I live on serves as a shortcut for a lot of people. It is currently closed at one end for construction and through traffic has been routed to a very narrow residential side street. The street is so narrow you have to pull over to let oncoming traffic go. It's pretty much one lane wide.
The first day of the detour, the residents put up hand-made signs that said Slow Down. After a week or so they managed to get official cones and signs that say Single Lane Road ahead and they've put up their own Slow signs on the cones. Do people slow down? No! They continue to drive like maniacs on this street.
The cognitive dissonance is staggering. What on earth makes people behave so badly behind the wheel? Do they seriously want going to or from work to be the last thing they ever get to experience? And why is the only response pathetic little traffic cones? If it were me I'd send a cop out there and start raking in the money.
So in answer to the question, what does Public Safety mean? Photo ops for the president maybe? But nothing for the rest of us apparently.
The first day of the detour, the residents put up hand-made signs that said Slow Down. After a week or so they managed to get official cones and signs that say Single Lane Road ahead and they've put up their own Slow signs on the cones. Do people slow down? No! They continue to drive like maniacs on this street.
The cognitive dissonance is staggering. What on earth makes people behave so badly behind the wheel? Do they seriously want going to or from work to be the last thing they ever get to experience? And why is the only response pathetic little traffic cones? If it were me I'd send a cop out there and start raking in the money.
So in answer to the question, what does Public Safety mean? Photo ops for the president maybe? But nothing for the rest of us apparently.
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