Facilitating motor vehicle traffic disfavors pedestrians and cyclists
This was on reddit, a twitter response making the point that eliminating traffic signals because of "technological miracle" of "automated driving" provides zero accommodations for pedestrians and cyclists--unless we start wearing some kind of automated device that treats us as traffic too, and interfaces with intelligent traffic systems.
how the fuck am I as a pedestrian supposed to cross this road? 😭 https://t.co/63NAzmiWT1
— Gugu👗 (@Gugullig) March 6, 2022
I make the same point about roundabouts all the time. They aren't an urban-appropriate road treatment in that their point is to facilitate and speed up motor vehicle throughput by eliminating traffic signals. But they aren't designed to favor pedestrians and cyclists.
Therefore, since cities are supposed to be about alternatives to the car, roundabouts, and perhaps even "autonomous vehicles" are anti-urban, even though they are touted to be pro-urban.
Labels: autonomous vehicles/AV, bicycle and pedestrian planning, car culture and automobility, intelligent transportation systems/ITS, sustainable mobility platform, urban design/placemaking
posted by Richard Layman @ 3:27 PM&Permanent Link
11 Comments:
You can see the same on a lower level with driver assistance systems.
Rear cameras mean nobody turns to look and see if anyone is there. Maybe the camera has a better angle but in my experience it is better for parking and not seeing if someone is walking in that space.
Blind spot detectors vary widely but very few work in urban environments; they constantly go off and I have yet to see one pick up a bike which is probable the biggest danger while driving. Again no pedestrians either.
Various cross traffic detectors are meant for parking lots, not urban streets.
CRUISE by GM is working on urban deriving, but I don't think anybody else wants to.
It's like the CAFE and safety requirements -- they are driving consumes to larger vehicles with higher beltings and smaller windows. You want safety on the roads you need drivers to pay attention.
the cars with the slits for rear windows, it's like a van. You can't see anything.
Yes, the cameras are great for parking. But you're right about still seeing people.
We had access to cameras in Zipcars and the Mercedes cars in Car2Go. Now that we drive a 2003 Toyota, I really notice not having the cameras.
We've talked about this before. AV makes a lot of sense on freeways, with limited entrances, and traffic mostly functioning in a homogeneous way.
In "real cities" like DC or NYC there are lots of different kinds of traffic all vying for space. (In Salt Lake it's mostly cars.)
It becomes a programming problem almost impossible to solve. Especially when an ITS infrastructure has to be created. Why should cities pay for it?
Like with most "big innovations" this will start where it makes the most sense, like for tractor-trailers on freeways.
Although a guy on the pro-urb list just wrote this, so I might be wrong:
The bad news: There is no accounting for stupid human behavior and carelessness. I was horrified recently when and I almost hit a pedestrian that crossed in front of my car while I was checking traffic coming from the opposite direction. Fortunately, I gave a second look before proceeding, but many drivers would not. There is just no way to be 100% safe all the time - even when streets are well-designed and drivers are well intentioned.
The good news – as hinted in the original post: We now have the technology to reduce pedestrian fatalities in a significant way using automatic speed regulation technology.
On a recent Uber trip, I was riding in a Tesla where the speed and braking was being handled by the car’s computer while the steering was controlled by the (human) driver. You could feel the car slow in the presence of pedestrians which showed up as moving pink blobs on the monitor. I’m sure the speed was regulated so it would not exceed the posted speed limit (which is a win in itself). If you take that one step further, you could have regulated slow speed zones of 15-20pmh maximum in high-pedestrian activity areas like residential neighborhoods, downtown cores and around schools. Parents might even allow their kids to play in the street again. Forget trying to start this in red states, but maybe some blue city/states could do a pilot program and prove its effectiveness. (Maybe they already have?)
I am not advocating for autonomous vehicles as THE solution. I still prefer to drastically reduce the number of heavy vehicles on the road – especially in urban areas. But I do think this technology could have a major positive impact on pedestrian fatalities if it were calibrated to the urban context. I would like to see CNU get behind this initiative.
I'm assuming everything after " Although a guy on the pro-urb list just wrote this, so I might be wrong:" is a quote?
I'm very dubious that automatic speed regulation would change urban deaths.
First, almost every system can be turned off. Or you buy something that doesn't have it.
Second, not to argue with the physics of it, but urban deaths aren't mostly speed related. Especially if you are thinking "vuneralable" road users.
Alcohol and/or drugs is probably the largest common factor. BIB does have a provision to have automatic breathalyzers built into each new car -- presumably though monitoring HVAC intake. Can be done, but I think it's going to be as popular as automatic seatbelts were in the 1980s.
Another big change is right on red which was put in with 1970s fuel rules. We are straight back there, but with better automatic shutoff and hybrid/lelectric cars I'd start banning it in urban areas and ticketing for it via camera.
Yep, whenever I indent like that it's a quote.
2. Yep, yep, yep.... "operator error and misfeasance".
At least in cities, yes, right on red is a bad thing because we can't count on motor vehicle operators to defer, and check.
Hell, at night when it's dark it's that much harder.
And speaking of the pro-urb list, I thought this [point by Sara Hines was very interesting:
There is another odd-ball impact and that is the shift to LED lights. In most towns around here, they are simply pulling the old "glare bomb" lights and putting on a new LED head on the old cobra-head bracket. Problem is that LED light behaves differently. It is near coherent light, which means that it doesn't spread like the old Sodium vapor or halogen or even incandescent. Outside its narrow cone of coherent light, no light is bounced or spread. If you notice this at night, a pedestrian may be clearly illuminated under the direct beam of the light and become nearly invisible outside of it. A new LED fixture should be designed to spread light so that it can illuminate the figures walking in the dark. The old cobra heads were usually stuck on old wood poles which were placed to respond to the catenary droop of the utilities also carried on it, about 100-150'. That's too far apart for cheap LED conversions to work.
9 dead in this crash in Las Vegas. Ran red light, driving 65mph > than speed limit. Clearly reckless. It's not about road design...
https://meaww.com/gary-robinson-career-criminal-1998-rap-sheet-responsible-las-vegas-car-crash-jan-29
The Washington Post: Why the pandemic’s increases in risky driving might not dissipate as we return to normal.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2022/03/10/pandemic-risky-driving-maybe-here-to-stay/
She quotes a AAA study that found during the pandemic, more risk adverse drivers stayed off the roads, leaving more room for reckless drivers.
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