If you are a regular reader, you might remember that I believe that cities should be developed around pedestrians not cars. I walk a lot. I do own a car but I do not use it for short trips in the city. Finding a parking on busy streets generates unnecessary stress that I prefer to avoid. Therefore, it comes as no surprise that I care a lot about pedestrian security on the streets. This is why I am talking about cars today.
Regardless of who is at fault, the key factor is to avoid a car-pedestrian collision. Does technology could offer us some assistance? Volvo thinks so. Volvo is working on a Pedestrian Detection system that will alert you when there is a pedestrian or a cyclist in front of you that you could hit. If you do not take proper action, emergency braking will be activated. I do not know how they factor in that there might be a car that follows you. This is complex stuff for which it is capital to see if it works in the real traffic situations. So, to refine their system, Volvo sent two safety experts on a week-long test on the roads of Copenhagen.
The fact that car makers are starting to consider pedestrian safety is a wonderful step. There are many situations were this could be useful. But as you can see from the image I selected from the video (see at the top), both pedestrians and drivers must learn to better share the roads at intersections to avoid more accidents. Technology cannot replace good judgement. Watch this video to know more about the aim behind the Volvo’s Pedestrian Detection system.
