The report known as the pattern in U.S. new-vehicle gross sales towards heavier, bigger SUVs and different vans “an ominous one for road security,” one that would develop worse as even heavier electrified autos turn out to be extra commonplace. The group known as for revisions to federal laws that will cut back on the load and peak of recent autos to assist defend susceptible highway customers.
Susceptible highway customers “are in probably the most want of safety, not solely as a result of they’re bodily uncovered to motor autos, but additionally as a result of automakers should not incentivized to guard people who find themselves not shopping for their merchandise,” in keeping with the manager abstract.
The report discovered that U.S. cities made “catastrophic errors” within the early 20th century after they prioritized the auto on metropolis streets. Cities reduce on mass transit, shrunk sidewalks and created laws such as jaywalking to prioritize auto velocity over the protection of pedestrians and cyclists and using different modes of transportation.
Cities ought to be taught from these errors and as an alternative make guidelines that don’t “promote or allow a selected know-how,” the report says.
“Ought to conflicts emerge between the pursuits of road customers and know-how corporations (comparable to sidewalk drones that jeopardize the entry of these utilizing wheelchairs), advocates and policymakers ought to stand with the folks whose mobility is below menace,” the report abstract states.
The report concluded that dense neighborhoods are prone to expertise modifications in transportation security quicker than different areas, provided that they “induce extra brief journeys” and usually tend to have “high-quality networks of motorcycle lanes and sidewalks.”