It’s not only an issue when you hit people: Higher cars like SUVs, but also those sprinter vans, camping cars, trucks, pickups and so on are higher than most pedestrians. So if they are parking at the side of the road, motorists can’t see what is happening on the sidewalk. They can’t see if there is a cyclist or if someone wants to cross at the intersection. And that is one cause of all those deadly accidents while turning.
Shout out to dudes with 5% tint too, love it when they park around corners and functionally turn their car into a panel van.
Also the first time I saw a stock silverado in person (they’re very rare here) it was like the definition of “compensator”
Another big issue with these modern huge cars is how isolated the drivers are from the outside world. It’s like being in another world, completely cut off from the rest. This means if they are even a little distracted or not looking around properly, they are going to miss stuff much more easily. And it doesn’t help these new cars usually have terrible touch screens which make you look down to do something. Plus because of the size and shape of the cars they have huge blind spots. With how safe they feel, how high the driver sits and the sound isolation, they also lose their sense of speed, which causes them to always drive way too fast for any situation. And all of the new driver aids make it easier to slack on proper driving as well. Phone distraction was already a huge issue before we got these huge cars.
I was riding my bicycle in a crowded city on Friday and the amount of huge cars is terrible. These days they are all electric or hybrid as well, which means they accelerate like crazy. We had one street with a lot of pedestrians and bicycles about and those huge cars were darting all around. Accelerating like crazy and then braking hard when the next “obstacle” aka other human beings neared. It was outright dangerous.
I’ve been riding my bicycle to work for decades now, but the amount of near death experiences per day have gone up and up the past few years. People drive like maniacs and cars seem to be designed specifically for them to do so. I feel less safe every day and wonder if it will be the end of me. But I like the fresh air and the outside, plus free exercise.
I hate cars, so even tho I have a car, I try not to ever use it unless I absolutely have to. It sits rotting in the driveway for weeks on end. And it’s only because I sometimes need it unplanned I still keep it around. Lots of times I’ve gotten a call from a friend who needed help with some job around the house. I’m handy and I have tools, so I load up my car and drive over. I like to help people, so I guess I’ll keep the car.
Yeah, that’s an issue, too. Tinted & polarized windows. Smaller windows on modern cars. Better soundproofing. There is no way to communicate with drivers.
The small windows are crazy. Always when I get a newish car from a rental it feels like the window surface is yet smaller. Waiting for a slit only, like in those WW1 tanks.
And yet another issue is that the height doesn’t just matter while driving, but also when cars are parked. Being able to anticipate dangerous situations is a key aspect for safety, but if tall cars on the side of the road block your visibility that becomes much harder.
There’s these monstrous pickup trucks they sell now, they don’t even fit in my buildings parking spots, they stick out 5 feet and are super wide. I don’t understand why this isn’t regulated
At some point SUVs should be treated like Vans already.
They’re not there? Thought they would be over there compared to here in US where my giant EV9 is still considered a station wagon even though it’s bigger than any van I’ve previously owned.
I say, when the vehicle starts, the surrounding cameras should automatically start up and show the driver what’s closest to the vehicle. Just like how they start automatically when engaging the reversing gear. That way it’s a quick look to see if there are any small obstacles.
Ah yes, further encourage the development of literal orphan crushing machines. Chasing the root of the problem would require regulation causing companies to take a hit to the bottom line; we can’t have that! We have shareholders!
There are going to be large vehicles, no stopping that. So I think this is a good suggestion. But I agree with your sentiment. 😞
Before I take off with my small SUV (Volvo EX40), I turn on the cameras just to make sure there’s nothing in the car’s immediate vicinity. If I reverse out, it does it automatically.
Why is there no stopping? Of course we can stop it with regulations and laws.
Trucks also have a fixed length and height, so why not cars?
