What small changes would you make to improve road/car safety

What small changes would you make to improve road/car safety

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Discussion

Moonhawk

Original Poster:

10,730 posts

218 months

Monday 14th April 2014
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After seeing this article on the BBC website - it got me thinking about roads/cars and what could be done to improve safety even further.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-27021291

I have a few idea of my own - but wondered what others would change if you could.

Mine:

1. Paint road markings/signs with phosphorescent paint - and incorporate "black light" bulbs into headlight assemblies. That way the road markings would appear to glow - rather than just reflecting light. These lights could be in a permanent "high beam" state since they dont affect human night vision or dazzle. It could also make pedestrians more visible, especially where they are wearing hi-vis or clothing washes with optical brighteners.

2. I'd change the flash pattern of hazard lights. A vehicle parked at the side of the road with its hazards on that has another vehicle parked behind it without hazards on looks like it is indicating to pull out. By changing the flash pattern of the hazards to something like a double flash, pause, double flash etc - this would make hazard warnings distinguishable from indicators.

3. Brake force indicating rear brake lights. Like a high mounted rear brake light bar - but where the brake force is indicated. So for example - the bar would illuminate from the outside into the middle (from both ends). Light brake force would therefore only light a few LEDs at either end - whereas strong braking would illuminate the entire bar - and everything in between.

BRMMA

1,845 posts

171 months

Monday 14th April 2014
quotequote all
Include Motorway driving in lessons/driving test

have a basic driving competency check every 10 years and every 5 years once over 60

castration for the shaven headed angry guys

Hoofy

76,253 posts

281 months

Monday 14th April 2014
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Make it compulsory for cyclists to wear something that makes it easier to spot them. Whether that's a clown suit or reflective armbands, I'll leave that up to the authorities to decide. Could even be reflective mudguards. I don't care if it makes your bicycle look naff. Red and orange lights on cars ruins the colour coordination of most cars. Boo-hoo.

TommoAE86

2,659 posts

126 months

Monday 14th April 2014
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BRMMA said:
Include Motorway driving in lessons/driving test

have a basic driving competency check every 10 years and every 5 years once over 60

castration for the shaven headed angry guys
+1, also a proper bit of night/wet driving... I would add fog driving but that's abit harder to come by wink

ferrariF50lover

1,834 posts

225 months

Monday 14th April 2014
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I've argued for the latter two mentioned by the OP for many years. The first one is an extremely good idea and should be pitched to someone who will listen as a matter of urgency.

The cyclist thing is something which I recently argued against. I'm all for making changes as per the ones mentioned by the OP, but it's not the job of the legislature to protect morons from themselves. If people are stupid enough to ride a bike with no helmet/lights/dressed like a ninja, then that is nothing but Darwinism playing its part. Those of us fit and strong enough to cycle and smart enough to take sensible precautions against death and injury are the type of people who need to survive in order that the species advances. Those too retarded to do likewise are just the sort of Wayne and Waynettas that we need to eradicate, lest we end up as a nation of Benefits Street types.

Simon.

s4tronic

245 posts

125 months

Monday 14th April 2014
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low to mid speed collision avoidance system should be compulsory on all modern cars in my view. Like ones on Volvo or Mercedes.

iloveboost

1,531 posts

161 months

Monday 14th April 2014
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Remove/change the design of white signs in the centre of the road. They restrict visibility and cause a blind spot. They seem to be there to make sure drivers don't cut corners or go the wrong way at junctions/roundabouts/traffic calming measures. I understand the reasons for their use but I just wonder if they don't cause accidents by reducing visibility?
Anyway they make visibility worse and create an artificial blind spot can't we have less of them, or 'slimmer' signs, or transparent signs made of clear plastic?
Also I'd like warning signs just before blind turns/crests that tighten a lot or have a junction on or just after them advising a reduction in speed from the speed limit. Just a sign that has an exclamation mark like '!' would be enough. More money but would help anybody driving a road for the first time to slow down or be ready to stop.

Honestly the best way to improve road safety would be to have every car linked to every other car near them by GPS and assistance/warnings given to mean no car should ever collide with another car because of driver error. That will happen when self driving cars are common I think.

Riley Blue

20,915 posts

225 months

Monday 14th April 2014
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I'd have tyre manufacturers build a red ply into all tyres at the minimum legal tread depth so that tyres on the tread limit would be instantly recognisable.

I'd have the amber flashing warning lights on motorways changed to blue with adherence being mandatory and enforced - as would be the conditions when the lights were used.

Current insurance would be recognisable by a coloured disc in each vehicles' windscreen (or other visible means) so that non-insured vehicles were instantly identifiable.

Introduce a tiered driving tuition/examination system. A basic pass entitles daytime road use, advanced pass for motorway use and after dark. Introduce ten-yearly refresher courses and reaction and eyesight tests for the elderly.

Obviously these are 'fag packet' ideas; the actual methodology would need further thought.

Engineer1

10,486 posts

208 months

Monday 14th April 2014
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Moonhawk said:
2. I'd change the flash pattern of hazard lights. A vehicle parked at the side of the road with its hazards on that has another vehicle parked behind it without hazards on looks like it is indicating to pull out. By changing the flash pattern of the hazards to something like a double flash, pause, double flash etc - this would make hazard warnings distinguishable from indicators.
Great idea or all the lights in that cluster flash, either as a block or in a pattern within the normal hazards flash. - the only thing is you know some barry would wire their lights to do this for the indicator.

ezi

1,734 posts

185 months

Monday 14th April 2014
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I'd make motorway driving part of the test.

And while not strictly related to safety I'd made it legal to turn left on a red light, baffles me why it isn't already allowed

Monty Python

4,812 posts

196 months

Monday 14th April 2014
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s4tronic said:
low to mid speed collision avoidance system should be compulsory on all modern cars in my view. Like ones on Volvo or Mercedes.
This - it would cut down on all the fraudulent whiplash claims too.

Silverbullet767

10,680 posts

205 months

Monday 14th April 2014
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All those stupid dot matrix signs to say something useful, 'keep left unless overtaking' by default rather than, 'drive efficiently' or some eco balls that makes no difference to anyone.

SeeFive

8,280 posts

232 months

Monday 14th April 2014
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Remove the "if necessary" element for signals on the driving test.

Have a further mandatory advanced test after the current one - which essentially tests roadcraft and situational awareness. Until that test is passed drivers would carry a P plate on their car.

Do whatever is necessary to remove lane hogs from the road.

Convince the authorities to look at their own statistics on accidents and implement a road safety strategy that bears some resemblance to the real risks rather than the "speed kills" mantra blindly spat out today.

SturdyHSV

10,083 posts

166 months

Monday 14th April 2014
quotequote all
iloveboost said:
Honestly the best way to improve road safety would be to have every car linked to every other car near them by GPS and assistance/warnings given to mean no car should ever collide with another car because of driver error. That will happen when self driving cars are common I think.
Already happening.

Google "V2V compulsory" or "V2V 2015" etc.

But by wi-fi type communications on a different frequency band.

conkerman

3,298 posts

134 months

Monday 14th April 2014
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Engineer out reducing radius corners on roads.

Make the roads crap, but will be safer.

Dr Jekyll

23,820 posts

260 months

Monday 14th April 2014
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Change the rule for new drivers from
'6 points and you're a learner UNTIL you pass a retest'
to
'3 points and you're a learner UNLESS you pass a retest within 3 months'

Maybe have the same for those experienced drivers who reach 12 points instead of a ban.

Also include a written element in the driving test to weed out halfwits.




SturdyHSV

10,083 posts

166 months

Monday 14th April 2014
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<Clarkson>Spike on the steering wheel</Clarkson>

stott

40 posts

134 months

Monday 14th April 2014
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Moonhawk said:
3. Brake force indicating rear brake lights. Like a high mounted rear brake light bar - but where the brake force is indicated. So for example - the bar would illuminate from the outside into the middle (from both ends). Light brake force would therefore only light a few LEDs at either end - whereas strong braking would illuminate the entire bar - and everything in between.
I think Porsche already have this, they flash if you're really stopping hard

TheFinners

543 posts

126 months

Monday 14th April 2014
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IQ test for all drivers, or airbags/safety systems that deactivate when you do something stupid like cut someone up or a dangerous overtake. I guess my second point is a slightly less mean 'spike on the steering wheel' suggestion.

Escort3500

11,829 posts

144 months

Monday 14th April 2014
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Compulsory skid pan training, so that the novice driver might have some idea of what to do the first time it snows or they hit ice. Good thread BTW