4 ms·

Isn’t it better in safety due to the physics you mentioned?

RJIb8RBYxzAMX9u 3y ago
Yes and no. Let's say everyone drives compact cars, then my risk level -- completely made up number -- is 20. However, if everyone's driving para-tanks while I keep driving my compact car, then my risk level rises to 60, due to aforementioned physics. Now, if I join everyone, then my risk level falls to 40, so I'm safer. But compare to the initial case, I'm still less safe. Hence the prisoner's dilemma.
- nickpeterson 3y ago
  I’ve been downvoted over this before but really we just need weight limits on cars. Efficiency is pretty closely aligned and we seem to regulate that just fine.
  - WillPostForFood 3y ago
    Efficiency is pretty closely aligned Not in the battery power era.
    - TingPing 3y ago
      Of course it still is… smaller cars, smaller batteries, better all around.
      - oyashirochama 3y ago
        Versus distance and that is an issue of just the geography of the US, we are insurmountable large, even a high end bullet train would take 8-12 hours crossing the country. Stopping absorbs a lot of time for charging compared to ICE or hybrids.
        Broken_Hippo 3y ago
        It isn't an issue for everyday driving though. Most folks never take that trip at all, and they surely aren't doing it for a commute. Truck drivers are an exception. IIRC, the average commute in the US is about an hour. Realistically, you probably are only going to need a few hours of charging daily. Of course, the real problem in the US is infrastructure. It does no one any favors if you can't charge your car at your apartment, while at work, or can't find places to charge along the way. I haven't lived in the US for nearly 10 years - I moved to Norway, where electric cars are popular but the infrastructure for them has been growing too and there are places to charge your car. And that's just not possible in the US, and I doubt this is going to change in the current political atmosphere - again, rural and poor areas will be left behind at best.
        zirgs 3y ago
        But how many people, excluding truckers, drive those distances? Most commutes are under an hour.
        dontlaugh 3y ago
        China is similarly big and it has trains as the primary form of long distance travel. It’s possible and should be done, but it’s expensive and not directly profitable.
      - WillPostForFood 3y ago
        Weight != size. Battery powered cars tend to weigh a few hundred pounds more than comparably sized gas powered cars, which is more efficient? Weight doesn't give you an answer on efficiency.
  - bombcar 3y ago
    Very small cars are available in the USA, people just don’t buy many. Mini Cooper, smart, these exist.
    - zirgs 3y ago
      I saw a lot of Smarts in Rome simply because it's easier to find parking spaces for them there. A typical American pickup truck would be a total nightmare to own while living there. So fix your city planning issues and people will choose smaller cars.
      - bombcar 3y ago
        The Romans I was riding with agreed that the sideways parking was the only reason to get them, otherwise they considered them expensive for the size.
        zirgs 3y ago
        And that's a pretty big reason in cities that aren't littered with giant parking lots.
    - TingPing 3y ago
      Smart cars are no longer sold in the US. In general options are limited. Previously compact cars like the Civic are now midsize. And even then they produce them in low volumes so they are always sold with a markup.
    - wlonkly 3y ago
      The Mini Cooper is bigger than you'd think -- same wheelbase and height as a Corolla, although the cargo area and hood are shorter. But the wheelbase of the Smart car (no longer sold in the US, by the way) is 2/3 that of the Mini.
  - YokoZar 3y ago
    Japan has vehicle weight taxes. The US has the inverse (trucks and SUV have laxer fuel economy standards)
  - mcv 3y ago
    You need stricter license requirements for more dangerous cars. Get a commercial license if you want to drive an actual truck.
    - daemin 3y ago
      That could be one way to reduce the desirability of these "trucks" and SUVs by making anything classified as a truck require a truck license to drive. Though I believe as in Australia in the USA drivers licenses are on a per-state basis. This makes it much more difficult to get enacted, though I imagine California and New York might be places where it could get traction.

Yes and no. Let's say everyone drives compact cars, then my risk level -- completely made up number -- is 20. However, if everyone's driving para-tanks while I keep driving my compact car, then my risk level rises to 60, due to aforementioned physics. Now, if I join everyone, then my risk level falls to 40, so I'm safer. But compare to the initial case, I'm still less safe. Hence the prisoner's dilemma.

nickpeterson 3y ago
I’ve been downvoted over this before but really we just need weight limits on cars. Efficiency is pretty closely aligned and we seem to regulate that just fine.
- WillPostForFood 3y ago
  Efficiency is pretty closely aligned Not in the battery power era.
  - TingPing 3y ago
    Of course it still is… smaller cars, smaller batteries, better all around.
    - oyashirochama 3y ago
      Versus distance and that is an issue of just the geography of the US, we are insurmountable large, even a high end bullet train would take 8-12 hours crossing the country. Stopping absorbs a lot of time for charging compared to ICE or hybrids.
      - Broken_Hippo 3y ago
        It isn't an issue for everyday driving though. Most folks never take that trip at all, and they surely aren't doing it for a commute. Truck drivers are an exception. IIRC, the average commute in the US is about an hour. Realistically, you probably are only going to need a few hours of charging daily. Of course, the real problem in the US is infrastructure. It does no one any favors if you can't charge your car at your apartment, while at work, or can't find places to charge along the way. I haven't lived in the US for nearly 10 years - I moved to Norway, where electric cars are popular but the infrastructure for them has been growing too and there are places to charge your car. And that's just not possible in the US, and I doubt this is going to change in the current political atmosphere - again, rural and poor areas will be left behind at best.
      - zirgs 3y ago
        But how many people, excluding truckers, drive those distances? Most commutes are under an hour.
      - dontlaugh 3y ago
        China is similarly big and it has trains as the primary form of long distance travel. It’s possible and should be done, but it’s expensive and not directly profitable.
    - WillPostForFood 3y ago
      Weight != size. Battery powered cars tend to weigh a few hundred pounds more than comparably sized gas powered cars, which is more efficient? Weight doesn't give you an answer on efficiency.
- bombcar 3y ago
  Very small cars are available in the USA, people just don’t buy many. Mini Cooper, smart, these exist.
  - zirgs 3y ago
    I saw a lot of Smarts in Rome simply because it's easier to find parking spaces for them there. A typical American pickup truck would be a total nightmare to own while living there. So fix your city planning issues and people will choose smaller cars.
    - bombcar 3y ago
      The Romans I was riding with agreed that the sideways parking was the only reason to get them, otherwise they considered them expensive for the size.
      - zirgs 3y ago
        And that's a pretty big reason in cities that aren't littered with giant parking lots.
  - TingPing 3y ago
    Smart cars are no longer sold in the US. In general options are limited. Previously compact cars like the Civic are now midsize. And even then they produce them in low volumes so they are always sold with a markup.
  - wlonkly 3y ago
    The Mini Cooper is bigger than you'd think -- same wheelbase and height as a Corolla, although the cargo area and hood are shorter. But the wheelbase of the Smart car (no longer sold in the US, by the way) is 2/3 that of the Mini.
- YokoZar 3y ago
  Japan has vehicle weight taxes. The US has the inverse (trucks and SUV have laxer fuel economy standards)
- mcv 3y ago
  You need stricter license requirements for more dangerous cars. Get a commercial license if you want to drive an actual truck.
  - daemin 3y ago
    That could be one way to reduce the desirability of these "trucks" and SUVs by making anything classified as a truck require a truck license to drive. Though I believe as in Australia in the USA drivers licenses are on a per-state basis. This makes it much more difficult to get enacted, though I imagine California and New York might be places where it could get traction.