3 ms·

It’s really very many when you consider that a vanishingly tiny fraction of those deaths happen yearly in Japan thanks to it having alternatives to driving. App

It’s really very many when you consider that a vanishingly tiny fraction of those deaths happen yearly in Japan thanks to it having alternatives to driving. Apparently 42k in 2022 in the USA [1] vs 2.6k in Japan [2] while the US population is less than 3 times larger. Proportionally scaling that out I can’t think of many policies where Americans would dismiss 30k+ excess civilian deaths as “not much” and the cost of doing business, only a measly ten Sept 11 attacks. It’s pretty amazing how cheaply the USA values human life if a car is involved. [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Motor_vehicle_fatality_rate_in_U.S._by_year https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Motor_vehicle_fatality_rate_in... [2] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_motor_vehicle_deaths_in_Japan_by_year https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_motor_vehicle_deaths_i...

throwaway2037 2y ago
This is a great post, but I want to dispel this never-ending myth on HN that Japan does not have a lot of cars and drivers. To be clear: All highly advanced non-micro-state nations are driving nations! Read that twice, please. (Yes, we all know that Japan is insanely urbanised with at least three megacities.) Just 15km outside major cities in Japan will be lots and lots of driving. More than 30km, basically every house has a car. That said, I don't know why the number of deadly accidents is so much lower in Japan, compared to the US. Is it speed? Is it driver training? There are so many K-cars driving next to huge dump trucks that could squish them like a fly!
- teqsun 2y ago
  I can't say it's definitely the cause, but some of the things that might play a role are that the driving test is much more strict/difficult, the minimum age to get a permit is 18, the highways are generally less dense, the speed limits are lower, and traffic enforcement is stricter.

throwaway2037 2y ago

This is a great post, but I want to dispel this never-ending myth on HN that Japan does not have a lot of cars and drivers. To be clear: All highly advanced non-micro-state nations are driving nations! Read that twice, please. (Yes, we all know that Japan is insanely urbanised with at least three megacities.) Just 15km outside major cities in Japan will be lots and lots of driving. More than 30km, basically every house has a car. That said, I don't know why the number of deadly accidents is so much lower in Japan, compared to the US. Is it speed? Is it driver training? There are so many K-cars driving next to huge dump trucks that could squish them like a fly!

teqsun 2y ago
I can't say it's definitely the cause, but some of the things that might play a role are that the driving test is much more strict/difficult, the minimum age to get a permit is 18, the highways are generally less dense, the speed limits are lower, and traffic enforcement is stricter.