Minnesota boy rides bike into Prius he didn't hear
View the video report here.
Eight-year-old Owen Erickson has some scrapes and bruises but is otherwise no worse for wear after he found himself on the hood of a Toyota Prius this week. Owen had turned his bicycle onto the road in front of the car, which his mother says he didn't hear. The event, which thankfully ended well for all involved, brings additional attention to the debate regarding hybrids and the lack of noise they make under electric power. Owen's mom notes that the noise matter is, in her opinion, a big safety concern. That said, had her son looked before turning into the street, he would have likely avoided his accident entirely.
The blind can't simply look, however, and they rely on their ears to know when a vehicle is approaching. This is a matter that's garnered coverage here in the past. Legislation that addresses the noise-for-hybrids issue now sits before the U.S. House of Representatives. Whether it'll lead to anything is anyone's guess, but when you consider that hybrids are now part of the mainstream and not the novelties they were a few short years ago, someone's probably going to do something soon. It'd be nice to see the automakers proactively address this and eliminate the need for additional federal regulation. Politicians are experts at overcomplicating matters, and when you boil this one down, it's pretty uncomplicated: just add noise. After all, hybrids and electrics are likely to become an increasingly common presence on our roads as automakers bring the next generation of green vehicles to market. The whole idea's not that ridiculous, anyway. Don't forget that Henrik Fisker plans to pipe noise out through speakers on his Karma hybrid...and he's promoting it as a desirable feature.
[Sources: KARE, CNN]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
Nick 10:43AM (5/08/2008)
but I WANT a quiet car!
Also, I learned in drivers ed that when you see a blind person with a cane, you are supposed to slow down and make sure you don't hit them! What happened to the driver being responsible? How about mandatory prison sentences for drivers who hit a blind person (hybrid or not)?
Too bad people are busy sipping their lattes and talking on their iPhones to pay attention!
Don't make my future EV noisy!
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s10 10:47AM (5/08/2008)
When the first cars hit the road a hundred years or so ago, in several cities it was a rule that somebody would walk a few meters in front of the car with a big bell, alarming pedestrians that a car was approaching. Nowadays this would be a rather impractical solution.
The silence of a hybrid/ electric car has many advantages... immagine a freeway with just those cars... no more soundwalls needed...or the comfort inside a silent car.... so making hybrids/electric cars unnecessary noisy is just idiotic.
Instead we should find a more high tech solution for the blind, pretty sure we can do better than a stick.
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Tim 10:48AM (5/08/2008)
Right, this is the ONLY little kid in the entire world who was hit by a car because he was not LOOKING where he was going. Don’t blame the car!
Anyone who is simply paying attention can hear the tires of a car as it moves down the road! Or do we need to remove mufflers from all cars?
(must have been a slow news day)
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Jason 10:54AM (5/08/2008)
My favorite was the episode of "Weeds" last season. A gangbanger was riding with the main character - a suburban mother who deals weed to suburbanites. This gangbanger loved her Prius because it was great for "drive-by's" because it was so quiet.
-Jason
http://www.screamtobegreen.com
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JustZisGuy 11:10AM (5/08/2008)
This is inane.
Did you know that bicycles make very little noise, and can travel upwards of 40 km/h? Quick, ban them!
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Mort 11:13AM (5/08/2008)
Bullshit! Most of the noise from modern cars comes from the tires. I suppose we should make electrics emit 100 decibels, that would make the oil companies happy.
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Dan 11:13AM (5/08/2008)
This is so f*cking retarded. I can hear a prius just fine... I can hear its gasoline engine, its tire noise, its belts and fans... unfortunately people will always look for a quick way to make a litigious buck... and stupid courts will give them the opportunity.
Even the f*cking Tesla Roadster makes noise! (and what a sweet sound it is!)
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Richard 11:18AM (5/08/2008)
I agree, who forgot to teach this kid to LOOK both ways before crossing the road?????? Let's show this kid how to blame everything bad on everybody else, and then sue them! How pathetic. That said, a small whistle on the front of the car would solve this problem. How much are whistles these days, $20,000?
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Wise Golden 11:30AM (5/08/2008)
"That said, had her son looked before turning into the street, he would have likely avoided his accident entirely. "
Yep...that pretty much says it all.
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Wildgoosechase73 12:55PM (5/08/2008)
This raises a point that has bothered me for a long time. We need to register, license and insure our cars but bikes can share the road without being insured. How is this kid going to pay for the damages to the car?
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Mh 11:40AM (5/08/2008)
It's OK to teach children to look before taking off on a bicycle unless the child is blind and has no eyesight. But that would cause people to be responsible parents and that just can't happen. It would also require kids to be sensible and responsible. Hmmmm... ;)
OTOH, this is a serious matter for those who needs to depend on their hearing to get around.
As it's been pointed out, Bicycles are *very* quiet as well. Has anyone gotten hit by one? It kind of hurts and you never hear them coming.
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Lee 11:46AM (5/08/2008)
We definitely need a law here. I'm not sure if we should outlaw all hybrids, and quiet high-end luxury vehicles or all little kids on bicycles, but somethings got to go. Why don't we just outlaw all cars that don't make a racket and all little kids on bicycles at the same time? The only problem is that our prisons are already full of people caught smoking pot in their backyard. Simple solution, build more prisons.
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MarkR 11:43AM (5/08/2008)
I don't get it. I live on a residential collector street that has a lot of cars drive by. I watch the prius' go through the stop sign and drive by my house and honestly they don't seem any quieter than the typical Honda or Toyota small car. smaller cars with a good exhaust all you are hearing anyway is the road/tire noise as they drive by, as long as they aren't flooring it and don't have the radio blasting.
Now I could understand if it was windy and he couldn't hear because of the wind in his ears, but thats why you look when riding a bike. I cant even hear a f350 diesel behind me when I ride my bike in a 15 mph head wind. so you know I'll be looking behind me.
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why not the LS2LS7? 11:44AM (5/08/2008)
Add noise? What happens when there is other noise around masking it?
I have a better solution:
Kids who can see should look both ways.
The blind can have some kind of car detector they look both ways with, it'd be like laser distance measuring equipment. That'll detect silent cars, cars that are turned off and oxcarts too. Even when it's loud around.
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Wise Golden 11:45AM (5/08/2008)
"OTOH, this is a serious matter for those who needs to depend on their hearing to get around."
No, it isn't. It's not a serious matter at all. It is entirely up to those people to figure out a way to stay out of traffic -- same as it is with retarded people, and for that matter, dogs and cats.
Get real -- this is nuttiness.
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Karkus 12:18PM (5/08/2008)
I ride my bikes on roads on a regular basis. If I depended on hearing cars, I'd be dead by now even if I was a cat with 9 lives. You have to look!
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kert 12:31PM (5/08/2008)
blind in traffic ? carry an ultrasound sonar or something to keep you safer. helps with other moving objects apart from sneaker EVs as well.
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Mort 12:49PM (5/08/2008)
Ride a hog, or get sued. Your choice.
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John Cihak 1:08PM (5/08/2008)
I was driving down the road yesterday in my NON-hybrid car (Honda Civic). Its a quiet car. A boy riding his bike in front of me swerved into the road right in front of my car without looking! I had to honk the horn several times and swerve into the opposite lane to miss him. IF YOU DON'T LOOK WHERE YOU ARE GOING YOU WILL HIT SOMETHING!
Don't make this about blind people - this boy was not blind and he hit a car anyway.
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Lee 1:31PM (5/08/2008)
The blind can be trained to hear electric vehicle motors. They make a distinctive E-buzzing sound. I can hear them clearly and do not have the ears of a blind person. If the car is moving very slowly then probably no one can hear it unless it's a hog or a real beater.
So why haven't the hearing impaired been complaining all along, or have they all been run over already.
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