Daniel4

Nowadays new cars are coming up with all sorts of warning systems designed for the standard bad driver in mind. There's the forward collision warning, the lane departure alert and steering assist, and blind spot detection and warning. Next will have to be a bicycle, pedestrian and unexpected obstacle alert warning. That's phase 1.

Phase 2 will have to have the car take control so the driver will not be allowed to tail-gate, swerve or rage against other road users when these alarms go off.

When that works. We'll be on our way to self-driving cars.

Kontact 

How many accidents have you had from aggressive behavior? "Bad situations" are primarily those the end in injuries, not hurt feelings.

Don't get me wrong, honking sucks. But it isn't the most dangerous thing that happens.

hotbike

I'm telling everyone, whenever the subject comes up, that "Rumble Strips" are obsolete, and rather than destroy good pavement with them , just buy a car with "Lane Departure Warning".

I agree, the self driving cars are coming along , they are in just a couple of years we will see them.

genec

Perhaps the biggest issue with those fancy new features on modern cars... one has to "engage" them before they work.

My wife expressed dismay that her 2016 Mazda3 wasn't warning her about adjacent lane traffic... I pointed out she had to use the turn signals, so the car would know she wanted to change lanes. I also pointed out that the yellow warning symbols STILL appeared in the side mirrors... if she bothered to look.

The new cars that have these features, generally have a way to turn them off, or expect you to engage them... by doing something like "use a turn signal."

Poor drivers can still drive poorly in a smart car.

Daniel4

Yes, that's true-for now. But just like the daytime running light, those warnings and alerts will eventually be automatically on when the engine or motor is turned on.

hotbike

I have a 2010 Chrysler and I have to turn the daytime running lights on manually, and the marker lights have to be on , and btw, they're called "fog lights" on this car, but they're near the ground , below the regular headlights. DRL's are actually based on motorcycle lights, now everyone has lights on in the daytime.

Ninety5rpm

The difference is that we can justify having others depend on lights and reflectors to see cyclists at night - we can't justify having anyone depend on transponders to know a cyclist is there. Humans can see if they look where they're going and if cyclists ride where motorists are going and therefore looking... (but I digress).

We already can see. Today's technology can already identify cyclists reliably. Tomorrow's will work even better. The whole transponder idea is a ridiculous red herring.

hotbike

I still *want* a transponder for my Bike , so I know when a CAR is coming...

ThermionicScott 

If you can't tell a car is coming "the old-fashioned way", bicycling might not be for you.

hotbike

No, I prefer the newfangled gadgets , the rear-view mirror and the tiny video camera. The "old-fashioned way" involves craning your neck, which you can't do with displaced vertebrae ...

ThermionicScott 

What's "newfangled" about mirrors?

hotbike

The bar end mirrors, which are convex enough to see two or three lanes, did not exist prior to 1994.
Okay, there were those chrome mirrors , I tried , but the tin piece keeps getting crushed flatter and flatter every time you tighten it, and you need to carry a wrench to re-tighten those every time you hit a bump,
and you can only see your pants zipper, your fly, you can NOT actually see if there's a car behind you... with those "Old fashioned" mirrors.

ThermionicScott 

My 1970s-technology helmet mirror does the job just fine. It's hard for me to consider anything developed before my time "new-fangled."

I'll bet if you got your wish for transponders in every vehicle, the amount of squitter from all the nearby vehicles would drive you insane in very short order. Thankfully, I don't see it happening before autonomous vehicles replace most of the human drivers. They are already wicked-good at knowing where all the cyclists and pedestrians are without tracking devices. And they're not going to space out on their cellphones either.

I-Like-To-Bike

I dunno, my old fashioned cheap chrome mirror with a cheap clamping mechanism works just fine without constant tightening or adjustment.

Perhaps you should tighten the clamp correctly the first time and try not to keep dropping your bicycle on the ground on the mirror side. Maybe Cycling Savvy offers a course on how to use a mirror without all the drama!

Daniel4

I'm not sure who you are referring as "wicked-good". Currently, human drivers are the cause of 6000 to 8000 pedestrian and cyclist deaths a year across the USA. I hope you don't think that's good enough because there's certainly room for improvement.

ThermionicScott 

I meant autonomous driving systems, of course. I am 100% in favor of getting distracted, drunk, stupid, and/or angry people out from behind the wheel.

BobbyG

As far as road rage, "hands-free" driving will just allow motorists to more easily reach for their guns, load them (if not already) and aim better at other drivers.

Ninety5rpm

To the extent that there is a serious point underlying this statement, it should be noted that drivers of vehicles are far more prone to road rage than are passengers. And in a self-driving car everyone is a passenger. It's far less annoying, much less enraging, to be delayed while a passenger than while actively driving.

ThermionicScott 

Did you mean to quote @BobbyG? Some people's minds go to dark places quickly, don't they?

BobbyG

I wasn't serious, but you do bring up a good point.

I wasn't serious, but yes, I guess my mind went there.

hotbike

That's Not chrome , that's red plastic. You've got something newer than what I was referring to.