Safe streets and walkable communities are key to reducing carbon emissions from driving, which is one reason we’re complaining so much about the trend away from cars, SUVs and minivans. The latter, officially known as light trucks, are disproportionately likely to kill pedestrians and cyclists. As the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) noted in a report, “Data suggest that the increased risk to pedestrians from SUVs in these crashes may be largely related to injuries resulting from collisions with the leading edge of the vehicle: bumper, grille, and headlights.” ”
Several studies have concluded that the increased weight of these trucks contributes to the carnage: “First, the extra weight means the vehicle will take longer to stop and will hit with more force than a lighter vehicle. Second, larger vehicles have higher levels of force. The front ends, which affects Pedestrian collision point.
Low hood is safer for people.
Euro NCAP
European light trucks have much more rational designs because they must meet Euro NCAP (European New Car Assessment Programme) standards that protect pedestrians. I was particularly excited about the Ford Transit, which has a low-slung front end and great visibility. Walkers are more likely to be seen, and when they are hit, they are more likely to roll on top rather than have to be taken out of the grill.
When I was recently giving a lecture in North Bay, Ontario, I saw a large Chevy Silverado parked right next to a Ford Transit. I approached the pickup truck, got close enough to set off an alarm somehow, and didn’t touch it! truly! -I noticed that the top of the cap was almost at the level of my nose. I can look directly at the transit. Of course, I tweeted the photo and it got more likes and comments than I have in years.
The tweet was also posted on Reddit, where it received 4,500 comments.
There have been a number of comments from people who use it for work, and of course that is what it was originally designed for. But as Ryan Cooper writes in “The Case Against America’s Truck Bulge”:
“Trucks and SUVs don’t make up 70 percent of car sales today because Americans are now 70 percent contractors and HVAC repairmen. The average pickup hasn’t gained 730 pounds since 2000 because 100 million people work livestock. The vast majority of SUVs and truckers drove sedans in earlier eras, and for these people, it’s about looks, power, speed and perceived safety for drivers, and the thought of pedestrians may upset that comfortable arrangement.
People are still commenting on Twitter. But it’s getting increasingly nasty and personal, with soy latte-type comments just beginning, because in the US and Canada, pickup trucks have become part of the culture war, the real working man versus the city kid who doesn’t work. .
In fact, Ford offers real practical vehicles that can do the same job, and that can still be designed for good visibility and increased safety. One would think that people who work all day with their trucks would care about this.
AEB: Autonomous emergency braking.
euro nccarb
In Europe, every vehicle must meet pedestrian and cyclist safety standards. They now have an autonomous emergency braking (AEB) system that seems to work. They write about the Ford Transit: “The system also detects vulnerable road users such as pedestrians and cyclists, and here it obtained good results. Even in the most difficult pedestrian tests conducted by Euro NCAP—a child running from behind parked cars in the car’s path—the system responded well up to speed About 40 km/h, and overall, collisions were avoided or mitigated for pedestrians and cyclists.
A week after you asked me, “You’ve never done anything honest in your life, have you?” Or being told that I don’t know the difference between a truck and a pickup truck – both of which are legally light trucks under US regulations – I came to the same conclusion as I did in my previous posts: Make light trucks as safe as cars or ban them from cities. Obviously this is possible. Every new European light truck does this.
These massive American pickup trucks and SUVs kill children and the elderly at twice the rate of regular cars. Many commenters point out that they need a pickup for work or towing, but there’s no reason they need those killer front ends and terrible visibility. Why is this not regulated?
