Page 10 - road safety

We’ve all heard of drone delivery, but two of the original founders of Skype believe that the future of personal couriers is an emission-less self-driving robot on six wheels.

Starship Technologies have been testing these robots for a while now, they’ve driven over 5,000 miles and are ready to start delivering soup and sandwiches to hungry first adaptors. Estonians Ahti Heinla and Janus Friis, two of Skype’s original founders, helped bring the idea to life. The parcel bots will soon begin making shipments in London, Dusseldorf, Bern and another undisclosed German city.

The robots are GPS/camera...

Close your eyes and imagine a futuristic car. What does it look like? It’s probably very sleek and aerodynamic, zipping through a modern city. This imaginary car doesn’t have rear or side view mirrors, did it? The future is closer than you think, reports Automotive News.

Mirror less vehicles, cars that are equipped with video screens instead of glass mirrors, improve safety while also raising miles per gallon. The idea has been proposed for years, but recent changes in Japanese laws have given the green light to this modern design.

Ichiko Industries, a Japanese company that supplies mirrors and...

If you’re still new to driving, it can be tricky to stay out of people's way on the highway. Most people don’t know how to handle fast drivers. Here’s what you need to know.

Take Someone With You

Ideally, you would take a few extra driving lessons prior to your test, and spend some time taking defensive driving classes so you can get experience with more advanced aspects of driving. But, if you can’t do that, it’s a great idea to take someone with you when you drive. Maybe you could convince your parent or an experienced friend to come along with you.

Avoid taking a car full of friends on your...

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is investigating a fatal crash involving a Tesla Model S cruising on autopilot mode. This is the first fatal crash in a semi-autonomous car.

The Verge reports that Joshua Brown, a 40-year-old Ohio resident and Navy SEAL was killed when neither he nor the Tesla’s sensors saw a tractor trailer pulling in front of the car on a Florida highway. The driver of the other vehicle was not injured. Brown’s obituary can be found here.  The crash occurred on May 7^th.

“We learned yesterday evening that NHTSA is opening a preliminary evaluation into the...

Be prepared. It's not only the boy scout's motto, it's also great advice for a road trip. This infographic provided by Driving Test Vic lists 10 things you should always have before in your car before you hit the road.

Source: https://www.drivingtestvic.com/car-safety-10-things-you-should-always-have/  

To have your teen become a safe, competent driver, he or she needs to develop critical driving skills and practice them in a range of driving environments and conditions. High quality practice driving is crucial because a major reason why teens crash is inexperience behind the wheel. The on-road license test is not going to cover the wide range of environments and challenges your teen will face during the intermediate period of licensure. It’s up to you to work with your teen to find opportunities to provide plenty of quality practice during the learner period. We can help.

Researchers from...

Automotive technology is constantly changing, from autonomous cars, to the rising interest in electric vehicles, there is something new every day. Automotive safety technology and policies are changing just as fast. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) will begin testing back seat safety in 2019. Virtual Vehicle, a research-and-development center in Austria is using advanced human-body modeling to test safety. These realistic tests produce more accurate results.

“You see the crash-test dummy leaning out of the window after a crash. That situation has nothing in common with...

It seems that a backup camera system is not the only to stay safe in a Tesla.

A string of recent Tesla crashes have made people think twice about the safety of autonomous vehicles, but the company claims they are not to blame for the latest Model X crash. Thankfully no one was severely injured after the brand new Model X accelerated while entering a parking spot and crashed into a building right next to a busy storefront.

The owner of the car claims that that autopilot is to blame for the accident and the company is at fault. Tesla has reviewed the vehicle’s logs and is confident that autopilot...

There’s a strange new trend. I’m not talking about the latest fashion accessory, social app, or hair style. This is something a lot more alarming. Pedestrians and cyclists are intentionally staging crashes to collect on insurance fraud. Not only is this very dangerous, it’s costing you a fortune. According to the U.S. Coalition Against Fraud, over $80 billion in fraudulent claims are made every year. All of these claims are not from staged crashes, but still, that’s a lot of hard earned money leaving your pocket. Fortunately, there is a simple way you can protect yourself from this unfortunately...

Summer is coming up, and that means barbeques, hot weather, and of course road trips! We want you to stay safe this summer, whether you are traveling along Route 66, Highway One, or simply taking your kids to soccer practice. Safecar.gov, a website powered by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, has a great interactive summer driving guide.

It’s very important to properly maintain your vehicle, especially if you plan on doing a lot of driving this summer. Solve any issues before they turn into dangerous problems. Schedule a safety inspection right now. I can wait. Ok, you scheduled...

Google’s self-driving car project has already logged more than 1.5 million miles since they began testing autonomous cars in 2014, but a recent patent has been turning heads in the automotive safety industry.

In the wake of the first accident caused by one of their self-driving cars a few months ago, Google received a patent this week to put a strong adhesive layer onto the front of their vehicles. Originally filed in 2014, the system is designed to keep a pedestrian on the hood of the car after being hit.

Here’s how it works. The purpose of the system is to prevent secondary impacts. A secondary...

A new type of bus service offers overnight rides between LA and San Francisco. The SleepBus is a Volvo truck equipped with individual sleeping pods. The new company, founded by Tom Currier and Jonathan Tyler, is hoping to become a reliable alternative to last minute air travel.

Each sleeping pod is equipped with power outlets, Wi-Fi, and a reading light. There is also a rest room and a SleepBus attendant available to answer any on board questions. Every Sleepbus has 20 beds, and children under 10 may share a bunk with their parents for free. Passengers are allowed 3 bags and can even bring their...

In what has become the largest recall in U.S history, The Department of Transportation (DOT) has ordered automotive parts company Takata to recall 35-40 million airbags. The vehicles are being recalled based on recent data provided by three independent testing groups and DOT experts. These recalls are in addition to the 28.8 million airbags Takata has already recalled. The expansions are to take place in phases between May 2016 and December 2019. The faulty airbags are already responsible for ten deaths and more than 100 injuries in the United States alone. There have been two deaths related to...

This infographic, courtesy of Woodstock Motors, features tips for car seat safety, facts about child car seats, and will help you decide which type of seat is most appropriate for your children.

According to Seatcheck, about 70% of children in car seats are improperly restrained, while around 96% of parents believe their child safety seats are properly installed. One of the most common installation mistakes is not using age and size appropriate seats.

Source: https://www.woodstockmotors.co.uk/repairs.html

This infographic, courtesy of Hussey Fraser, features facts about motorcycle injuries, important motorbike safety tips, and useful motorcycle road hand signals.

Source: https://www.injury-solicitors.ie/

This weekend families around the United States celebrated Safe Kids Day, an annual event put on by Safe Kids Worldwide, a nonprofit organization working to protect kids from preventable injuries. While the national celebration was held at Smashbox Studio in Culver City, California, over 200 Safe Kids Day events were also held all across the country. Preventable injuries are the leading cause of death to children in the U.S, but Safe Kids Worldwide believes that with education and forethought, most of these injuries are preventable. The event raises safety awareness and supports the life-saving...

The demand for electric passenger cars is still rising. Renault just produced its 50,00^th Zoe electric car. More and more commercial vehicles are slowly going electric. Motiv Power Systems, a California electric powertrain manufacturer, made the first electric school bus in America, and also produce other electric commercial vehicles including delivery trucks and refuse trucks.

Motiv have recently partnered with Creative Bus Sales to produce a new zero-emission school bus built on a Ford F59 Chassis with a Motiv all-electric powertrain and a Starcraft body. The Starcraft eQuest XL can hold up...

The streets of Beverly Hills are known for fancy cars and A-List celebrities. However something else will soon start turning heads in this glamorous Los Angeles County city, a fleet of driver less autonomous vehicles (A.V.s).

During an April 5th City Council meeting, The city of Beverly Hills passed a resolution creating a program to develop autonomous shuttles as a new method of public transportation. Council members unanimously approved the program, calling for Beverly Hills to become a leader in the testing and implementation of autonomous shuttles.

“Beverly Hills is the perfect community to...

Other than the hazards of not clearly seeing objects behind you where a Rear View Camera is clearly the solution, distracted driving is a very serious problem. A breathalyzer for your cell phone could be part of the solution.

New York police could soon by using textalyzer phone scanners that act as a breathalyzer for your cell phone, allowing them to quickly see if a phone was used at the time of an accident while also keeping content private.

Assembly assistant Speaker Felix Ortiz and New York Senator Terrence Murphy have partnered with awareness group Distracted Operators Risk Casualties to propose...

As a road safety leader and advocate, Rear View Safety is very proud to announce the Safety Initiative Award.

The Safety Initiative Award is given to companies in recognition of steps taken to protect both vehicle operators and pedestrians.

Rear View Safety is acknowledging companies who are taking important steps towards safety. The Safety Initiative Award is also something to proudly frame on the wall for all to see. By prominently displaying their award, companies can show employees, other companies, and the general public how committed they are to safety.

Want to earn a Safety Initiative Award...