Road safety
Stop Sign vs.Yield Sign: Choosing the Right Sign for Your Private Road or Lot
You know that feeling, right? That little stomach-drop you get when you’re walking across your property and you see two cars nearly trade paint at an intersection in your own parking lot. It’s followed by a blaring horn, maybe a few creative gestures, and you’re left thinking, “That was way too close.” Worse, you know […]
How to Use Traffic Signs to Stop “Near Misses” in Your Warehouse
You know the sound. It’s the sudden, high-pitched “beep-beep-beep!” of a forklift in reverse, followed by a sharp “Hey, watch out!” It’s the sound of a 5,000-pound machine and a 180-pound person almost occupying the same space at the same time. Sometimes, it’s just the flash of a blue forklift safety light snapping into view […]
Can playlists quell road rage?
A European car rental company has developed a playlist to combat the stresses drivers face while on the go — especially those that lead to road rage, reports FastCo. Founded on research about how music can contribute to drivers’ relaxation or focus, Sounds for Driving is a compilation of seven new songs designed for drivers […]
CA ban on driving while on the phone had no effect on accident rate
Although California banned handheld cell phone use in cars in 2008, it doesn’t seem to have had any effect on accidents, according to a recent study. University of Colorado, Boulder researchers studied police records of over half a million traffic accidents that happened six months before and after the ban. The research only looked at six […]
Teen drivers trading down in vehicle safety
New research says that many teenagers are operating cars that lack significant safety technology or good crash protection, reports the New York Times. The research, released last week by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, also notes that while teenagers are already at a higher crash risk regardless of what car they drive, the risks […]
Samsung launches bike that makes its own lanes
Smartphones have always been able to map out bikers’ routes, but now, thanks to Samsung’s Smart Bike, in the future, they may also help cyclists arrive safely. Launched at Milan Design Week earlier this year, the Samsung Smart Bike is equipped with laser projection, so it can light its own laser-beamed bike lanes. Some of […]
New moves toward predictive approaches to traffic safety
For all the resources focused on high-crash hotspots (specific areas host to a higher-than-average number of crashes), in Minnesota, for one, there aren’t many. Expert and engineer Howard Preston, who has worked in traffic safety for 40 years, explains to blog Next City his real safety concerns: targeting scattered crashes. “Severe crashes are scattered around […]
Is it better to wear a helmet or bike with a pack?
While it may seem to be a question out of the “Would you rather…?” game, it’s a query that poses important safety implications: Is it more dangerous to bike helmetless in a city packed with cyclists, or to ride, donning a helmet, as a single cyclist on a lonely route? Bikers and safety advocates have […]
Marijuana linked to higher car fatality rates
The number of fatal car crashes involving marijuana use tripled between 2000 and 2010, according to a recently released Columbia University study. As MSN reports, researchers ran toxicological investigations on almost 24,000 vehicle fatalities, finding that use of the drug “played at least some role” in twelve percent of fatalities. This study, along with a […]
Are pedestrian deaths the Titanic of intersection redesign?
The death of more than a thousand passengers aboard the sinking Titanic resulted in adoption of rigorous maritime safety regulations. It has taken a rising number of pedestrian deaths in New York’s busy intersections for the city to shift its focus to road safety. Take the example of a busy street where it took another pedestrian death […]