i was passed the other day on my bike during
daylight hours by a toyota prius, and i barely
noticed it.
cars with hybrid engines are a good thing when it
comes to reducing noise pollution, but i have to
wonder, is there such a thing as too quiet when it
comes to safety?
the question needs to be asked, when these cars
are more common on the roads, what will be the
safety impact on cyclists, pedestrians, those hard
of hearing, and cats and dogs?
and if it is deemed that they are too quiet, then
what should be done about it? mandatory external
noise limits? updated driver/cyclists/pedestrian
training? in-board bicycle detecting ray guns with
horns and flashing lights?
i guess for now, i'm just curious if anyone out
there is concerned about this.
below is some web-sleuthing i did in case you want
to know more about hybrids, decibels, and
engineering.
-brady
p.s. in case anyone is wondering why they have
never met me, it's because i live in olympia and
portland, or. i spent the first 16 non-motorized
years of my life in madison, so i subscribed to
find out what's going on there- hope you don't
mind me posting occasionally!
-------------------------------------------------
decibel measurements from a prius:
"Bottom line: the Prius is [perceptually] about
half as noisy as most other cars."
http://www.abouthearingloss.com/5259-Prius-noise-levels.html
-------------------------------------------------
fuel cell motorbikes: too quiet!
"Intelligent Energy, the company that built the
prototype, is looking at ways to produce an
artificial engine noise that will alert people to
its presence, making sure the machine is not
silent and deadly."
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/7206396/
-------------------------------------------------
designed to hurt pedestrians... less
"An impact absorber is fitted to the front bumper
to help minimise leg injuries in a pedestrian
accident. The placement of the windscreen wipers
has also been optimised to limit injuries to the
head and face areas in the event of a severe
pedestrian accident."
http://tinyurl.com/89z9x
-------------------------------------------------
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