5 ms·

Safety... for whom? Occupants, yes. But for pedestrians, bicyclists and other vulnerable road users, it's gotten worse with the trend for larger vehicles [1][2]

• lumost 5y ago
  This looks like a solvable problem, why aren't bumpers/hoods/doors optimized to protect pedestrians and bikers?
  • dharmab 5y ago
    Pedestrian impact is an explicit design feature in modern cars. That's why bumpers and hoods have the same general shape on nearly every modern car. However, trucks and SUV have become extremely popular. There's only so much you can compensate for when the mass of the car is increased. IIHS is changing tests now to incorporate pedestrian safety tests. NHTSA is also considering the change.
    • stefan_ 5y ago
      There is zero technical reason for trucks and SUVs to have the large hood they do that strikes adult pedestrians center mass (and kids at head level). It's extra comical on the upcoming electronic versions where instead of safe design, you get a "frunk". It's design nonsense and the only reason it ever got this bad is the regulators are fully captured.
  • i80and 5y ago
    New hoods often are, actually — Euro NCAP tests pedestrian collision safety. Notably the VW ID.4 at least has a hood designed to collapse inward in that case; I assume other cars have this feature as well
  • VectorLock 5y ago
    How long until airbag hoods?
    • minitoar 5y ago
      Yeah ideally the whole car upon impact would instantly turn into a big sploosh of medicated gel, safely ensconcing passengers and nearby pedestrians or cyclists and bringing everything to a sudden but harmless stop, and also it would make your skin look great.
      • yjftsjthsd-h 5y ago
        This is written in such a way that I kind of think you're being sarcastic, but all that sounds like a great idea, really.
        • minitoar 5y ago
          For the record I was not attempting sarcasm.
          • yjftsjthsd-h 5y ago
            Thanks for clarifying :-) I think the skin care was what really made it ambiguous for me.
      • abootstrapper 5y ago
        I’m not the only one who’s seen Demolition Man, right? https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=RnyhkBU1yaw https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=RnyhkBU1yaw
        • minitoar 5y ago
          Haha nice. Still caused quite a bit of damage to the surrounding area though. My inspiration was more Neal Stephenson I think.
      • roachpepe 5y ago
  • heavyset_go 5y ago
    Because the justice system consistently lets drivers who cause injuries to, or kill, pedestrians with their cars slide. Consequences for injuring or killing pedestrians only seem to enter the equation when serious negligence is involved, like when drivers are intoxicated, or when there is a hit-and-run.
    • midasuni 5y ago
      Even then killing with a car is treated far less seriously than otherwise. If you want to murder someone, have a few drinks and drive into them. They’ll be dead and you’ll get kit in a couple of years. Avoid the drinks and you might even get away with it completely.
      • heavyset_go 5y ago
        I went to school with someone who killed another person while driving drunk. They were found guilty and the judge didn't sentence them to serve any time incarcerated.
• supertrope 5y ago
  While the American market is now 2/3 SUVs and trucks you can still buy a sedan.
• cillian64 5y ago
  That's not an argument for not replacing your car, it's an argument for not buying a big car when you do. At least outside the USA it's not hard to buy a new small car.
  • aeharding 5y ago
    I disagree. There's no technical reason SUV and pickup truck front bumper design is so dangerous. People just prefer that design because it looks more appealing. "When a car strikes a cyclist, the initial impact causes severe lower-body trauma, but it’s also likely to sweep that person’s legs out from underneath them. This is significant, because as the rider slides up the hood, they’re scrubbing speed and, with it, some impact force. An SUV or truck, by contrast, is taller, so the initial impact is likely to target the pelvis or even the chest. “That momentum is carried through your body,” says Hu. In addition, the front-end shape of a vehicle is vital. More than 85 percent of fatalities among pedestrians and cyclists hit by cars and light trucks involve impacts from the front of the vehicle, according to 2017 data from the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration. Modern truck and full-size SUVs favor blocky, muscular styling at the front end, rather than the more gently sloping transition from grille to hood that cars and some compact SUVs have. Instead of sliding onto the hood when hit by a truck, the rider’s pelvis and torso rotate with a twisting, tearing motion. With a squared-off front end, Hu says, “it’s basically the person wrapping around the vehicle.”" https://www.outsideonline.com/2411345/suvs-trucks-deadly-cyclist-crashes https://www.outsideonline.com/2411345/suvs-trucks-deadly-cyc...
• hn_throwaway_99 5y ago
  As others have pointed out, this is really pretty irrelevant when it comes to any individual car being out-of-date safety-wise on a ~decade time scale. Completely ignoring differences in vehicle size, my old, small sedan had no side-air bags, no ABS, no rearview camera, etc., and these days every small sedan must have those features. Things are only more dangerous to pedestrians if I decide to replace my small sedan with something like a Hummer, but that's an orthogonal decision.
  • aeharding 5y ago
    As you point out, you cannot buy a new car today (in the US) without a wide array of safety features for occupants. Why isn't the same true for pedestrians and bicyclists?
    • hn_throwaway_99 5y ago
      FWIW, one of your linked articles has a very good analysis of where pedestrian fatalities are increasing, and gives suggestions for both road design and vehicle improvements: https://www.iihs.org/news/detail/study-highlights-rising-pedestrian-deaths-points-toward-solutions https://www.iihs.org/news/detail/study-highlights-rising-ped...