Comment by firesteelrain

Comment by firesteelrain 3 hours ago

I am not an expert on car safety standards in either US or EU. Nitpicking this quote: “ Europe currently has mandatory requirements for life-saving technologies, such as pedestrian protection, automated emergency braking and lane-keeping assistance”

My cheap, Chevy Trax has some of these features. Lane keeping assistance is there. It will tell me if there is a pedestrian in front of me. If it sees someone’s brake lights then it will flash a red light on the windshield to warn me that I am too close.

It doesn’t have emergency braking but my Wife’s 2019 Honda Odyssey had all those things except the pedestrian protection. All US vehicles.

What standards are we really talking about?

This is one of these articles that feels more like clickbait and judging on the emotional responses I see in this comment section it worked. The top comment is railing against Dodge Rams which wasn’t mentioned in the article.

acatton 3 hours ago

One of these features is "Active Hood" or "Pop Up Hood" which uses pyrotechnic to pop the hood of the car in case of a frontal collision with a pedestrian, thus making the front hood of the car acting as some kind of stiff airbag for the pedestrian. This helps reducing the risk of life-threatening injuries. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q4zfwUL3joI

NotJustBikes on youtube has a video listing more of these features which don't exist in cars sold in the US: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=--832LV9a3I

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stokedmind 2 hours ago

The US, at least at the state level, has often adopted standards far earlier than Europe. Seat belts, the latch system (called ISOFix in Europe) for car seats, and airbags come to mind.

Agreed that this feels like click/rage bait mostly against US pickup trucks, which many people in the States express frustration with too!

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woile 3 hours ago

NotJustBikes cover's this in the latest video, starting here:

https://youtu.be/--832LV9a3I?si=HpfmA8mFIsJJ_Uhp&t=333

Of course, I think if a company is targeting both markets, you may benefit from some features.

And it's not just about you, but the other people driving around you who pose a danger to you.

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firesteelrain an hour ago

That’s why the US vehicles focus on occupant safety since the US does not have a pedestrian centric culture - it is now built around cars. Some places in small pockets are trying to change that but it’s slow and unlikely to be widespread. Other roadway safety features for pedestrians by cities or counties have been enacted. But these lessons are learned in blood. Recently there was a case a couple years ago in a beach town in Florida where a girl died crossing A1A. That town put in a bunch of safety devices after aggressively lobbying the State. But the vehicles weren’t modified.
[1] https://www.clickorlando.com/news/local/2020/02/26/driver-wh...
[2] https://www.wesh.com/article/calls-for-crosswalk-changes-aft...

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quitit 3 hours ago

>EU vehicle safety regulations have supported a 36% reduction in European road deaths since 2010. By contrast, road deaths in the US over the same period increased 30%, with pedestrian deaths up 80% and cyclist deaths up 50%

There might be something in those stats other than anecdotal vibes.

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firesteelrain an hour ago

Devils advocate
How do we really know that? If people walk more and drive less one could argue that road deaths go down too. US has a lot more cars and roads than EU. And we have this massive Interstate system.

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