Autoblog http://www.autoblog.com Autoblog http://www.blogsmithmedia.com/www.autoblog.com/media/feedlogo.gif Autoblog http://www.autoblog.com en-us Copyright 2009 Weblogs, Inc. The contents of this feed are available for non-commercial use only. Blogsmith http://www.blogsmith.com/<![CDATA[Volvo buys full-page ads to pledge support for distracted driving legislation]]>http://www.autoblog.com/2009/09/30/volvo-buying-full-page-ads-to-pledge-support-for-distracted-driv/http://www.autoblog.com/2009/09/30/volvo-buying-full-page-ads-to-pledge-support-for-distracted-driv/http://www.autoblog.com/2009/09/30/volvo-buying-full-page-ads-to-pledge-support-for-distracted-driv/#commentsFiled under: ,



Volvo has publicly stated that it would like to eradicate accident-related injuries and deaths per year by the year 2020; an extraordinarily lofty goal that would obviously save countless lives. But in the next ten years, hundreds of thousands of drivers will die in traffic accidents in the U.S. alone, and Volvo feels that anti-distracted driving legislation passing through Washington right now could save quite a few.

To support the legislation, Volvo took out full-page ads in yesterday's Washington Post and USA Today. Volvo points out in the ads that it has long been committed to avoiding distracted driving accidents, and safety tech like adaptive cruise control and lane departure warning are evidence of the Swedish automaker's track record. The ads are purposely being run at the same time law makers, safety advocates, law enforcement and transportation officials converge in Washington for a distracted driving summit.

Volvo Cars North America President and CEO Doug Speck underscores his company's commitment to distracted driving laws, stating the need for "reasonable laws that help focus a driver's attention on the road will help reduce collisions, just as laws to enforce seat belt use have helped save lives." And when Volvo is talking about distracted driving, it's not just worried about text messaging and cell phones. The Swedish automaker also counts passengers, rubbernecking, driver fatigue, reading newspapers, books, and maps, adjusting the radio and looking at scenery as potential driving hazards.

We're definitely with Volvo with the book reading and the rubbernecking, but we'll take majestic scenery wherever we can get it. And if Volvo wants to eradicate map reading in the car, it can start by improving its own cloyingly contrived navigation system interface. Hit the jump to read the Volvo press release.

[Source: Volvo]

Continue reading Volvo buys full-page ads to pledge support for distracted driving legislation

Volvo buys full-page ads to pledge support for distracted driving legislation originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 30 Sep 2009 18:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>2020cell phonesCellPhonesdistracted drivingDistractedDrivingsafetytext messagingTextMessagingvolvoWed, 30 Sep 2009 18:01:00 EST<![CDATA[SURVEY: Drivers feel 35% less safe than they did five years ago... do you? [w/POLL]]]>http://www.autoblog.com/2009/07/28/survey-drivers-feel-35-less-safe-than-they-did-five-years-ago/http://www.autoblog.com/2009/07/28/survey-drivers-feel-35-less-safe-than-they-did-five-years-ago/http://www.autoblog.com/2009/07/28/survey-drivers-feel-35-less-safe-than-they-did-five-years-ago/#commentsFiled under:



The AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety has released new survey results stating that over one-third of the motorists it polled are driving scared. More specifically, they feel less safe than they did back in 2004. Thing is, 2008 was the safest year to drive a car since 1961, and adjusted for population growth, the safest year in American motoring history. Yet Americans feel less safe. Why? Yakking on cell phones and texting while behind the wheel were cited as the main reasons. In other words, distracted driving.

The question, then, is why? Well, cell phones are quite visible. In other words, just by looking you can't tell that the dude next to you poured a pint of tequila into his Big Gulp or that the woman next to him has been awake for the last 37 hours. But you can see that they're yelling at their spouse through the phone. Texting's worse because they're always looking down and sometimes have both hands off the wheel. Just our theory.

Another theory is that as the belt line of cars continue to rise and resemble armored cars, visibility plummets. Not being able to see out of a vehicle probably makes one feel unsafe. Another theory? Now that manufacturers talk about safety all the time (think: those Volkswagen commercials - SMASH!) people are starting to think about safety more and more. And finally, maybe the recession just has people singin' the blues. Full press release after the jump.

View Poll



[Image: Jeff J Mitchell/Getty]



Continue reading SURVEY: Drivers feel 35% less safe than they did five years ago... do you? [w/POLL]

SURVEY: Drivers feel 35% less safe than they did five years ago... do you? [w/POLL] originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 28 Jul 2009 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>Cell Phone DriversCell PhonesCellPhoneDriversCellPhonesSafetyTextingTue, 28 Jul 2009 15:00:00 EST<![CDATA[Study: Where does your city rank among the road-rageous?]]>http://www.autoblog.com/2009/06/16/study-where-does-your-city-rank-among-the-road-rageous/http://www.autoblog.com/2009/06/16/study-where-does-your-city-rank-among-the-road-rageous/http://www.autoblog.com/2009/06/16/study-where-does-your-city-rank-among-the-road-rageous/#commentsFiled under: ,


Listen up, all you people in New York, Dallas, Detroit and Atlanta. Settle down. You, too, Minneapolis. There's no excuse for the kinds of things you're doing out there on the road. That's right, we saw you. Well, not us, but your fellow drivers who tattled on a new AutoVantage survey about road rage. Those were the five worst cities for road rage incidents this year, with respondents citing hot-tempered drivers and aggressive speeding and horn honking.

But wait - there are two sides to the road named rage. Something must have set off those finger-waving commuters. And that would have been all the other drivers out there who are talking on their phones, tailgating, eating, emailing and checking Autoblog on their netbooks and iPhones. Those people, the survey says, are the ones getting on the nerves of the short-fused.

So where can a mild-mannered driver go and cruise the roads in peace? AutoVantage's survey lists Portland, Oregon as the most courteous city with Cleveland, Baltimore, Sacramento and Pittsburgh following. While we're at it, we'd like to spotlight Baltimore as a shining example of how a city can make a road-rage u-turn. That city moved up from No. 4 on last year's least courteous list. Now why can't the rest of you behave as well?

Here's a few more interesting numbers the survey offers. St. Louis drivers, 92% of them, reported seeing someone talking on a mobile phone every day. It's also a city where you're more likely to see drivers eating in their cars. A majority of Minneapolis drivers surveyed said they witness tailgating every day, and that city's drivers also reported more incidences of red light running. In Miami, you're less likely to see drivers signaling lane changes but much more likely to get a text message from a fellow driver. Maybe they're just texting their intent to come into your lane. "Can U belev I jst got cutof??? Had 2 run light 2 catch up 2 him at 90mph!!!"

Ironically, 7% of the drivers surveyed said they reacted to displays of bad driving by calling the cops... on their mobile phones, we assume.

Check out the press release after the jump. But you might want to wait until you finish your drive home. It's kinda long.

Continue reading Study: Where does your city rank among the road-rageous?

Study: Where does your city rank among the road-rageous? originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 16 Jun 2009 18:28:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>autovantagebad drivingBadDrivingcell phone driverscell phonesCellPhoneDriversCellPhonesdrivingdriving while textingdrivingwhiletextingmobile phonesmobile phones drivingMobilePhonesMobilePhonesDrivingroad rageroad rage surveyRoadRageRoadRageSurveytexting championshiptexting drivingtexting lawstexting while drivingTextingChampionshipTextingDrivingTextingLawsTextingWhileDrivingtraffictraffic accidentstraffic jamTrafficAccidentsTrafficJamTue, 16 Jun 2009 18:28:00 EST<![CDATA[Nissan testing car-to-car communication system]]>http://www.autoblog.com/2006/09/16/nissan-testing-car-to-car-communication-system/http://www.autoblog.com/2006/09/16/nissan-testing-car-to-car-communication-system/http://www.autoblog.com/2006/09/16/nissan-testing-car-to-car-communication-system/#commentsFiled under: , , , ,



Beginning this October and running through March 2008, Nissan will be equipping 2,000 drivers with an experimental system that aims to make Japan's roads a safer place to be.

The in-car system will gather signals from a variety of stationary objects, including traffic lights and electricity poles, estimate the vehicle's speed and warn drivers of impending disasters. If the system coordinates everything properly, the driver will be alerted when they exceed the speed limit in a school zone or if another motorist is about to blow through a red light.

All this is in an effort by the Japanese government to institute an intelligent transportation system that will reduce crashes throughout the country, beginning in 2010. Both Honda and Toyota are joining in the development of the system, which will also utilize mobile phones to judge speed, identify congestion and suggest alternate routes to avoid being bogged down in traffic.

How much of the system will be utilized for the above and how much will be bastardized into some Orwellian nightmare remains to be seen. We'll just admit that we'd be hard-pressed to 'volunteer' for such a study.

[Source: The Auto Channel]

Nissan testing car-to-car communication system originally appeared on Autoblog on Sat, 16 Sep 2006 16:02:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>cell phonesCellPhoneshondaintellegent transportation systemIntellegentTransportationSystemmobile phonesMobilePhonesnissanorwelliantoyotaSat, 16 Sep 2006 16:02:00 EST<![CDATA[Legislate me: drivers favor ban on distractions]]>http://www.autoblog.com/2006/08/16/legislate-me-drivers-favor-ban-on-distractions/http://www.autoblog.com/2006/08/16/legislate-me-drivers-favor-ban-on-distractions/http://www.autoblog.com/2006/08/16/legislate-me-drivers-favor-ban-on-distractions/#commentsFiled under: , , ,

A recent study by Response Insurance, a national car insurer, says that cell phones aren't the only driver distractions people want banned. Reading, grooming, and even listening to MP3 players or iPods were on the list with significant support.

A few interesting results of the survey is that more Blackberry users favor government legislation banning their use behind the wheel than non-Blackberry users (65 to 58 percent, respectively), and 28 percent of the population says that even hands-free cell phone devices should be banned.

It's no surprise that a whopping 79 percent of people favor banning reading behind the wheel, 72 percent favor banning texting, and 68 percent favor banning grooming, but a surprising number of people are also all for banning eating, smoking and listening to iPods or MP3 players (36, 34 and 28 percent, respectively).

Thanks to Jamie for the tip.

[Source: Response Insurance via Yahoo! Finance]

Legislate me: drivers favor ban on distractions originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 16 Aug 2006 19:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>blackberrybluetoothcell phonesCellPhonesdriver distractionsDriverDistractionsWed, 16 Aug 2006 19:01:00 EST<![CDATA[Mobile phone to provides real-time traffic reports]]>http://www.autoblog.com/2006/08/13/mobile-phone-to-provides-real-time-traffic-reports/http://www.autoblog.com/2006/08/13/mobile-phone-to-provides-real-time-traffic-reports/http://www.autoblog.com/2006/08/13/mobile-phone-to-provides-real-time-traffic-reports/#commentsFiled under:

The ability to foresee the state of freeway traffic in real-time (as opposed to snapshots of traffic conditions) seems to be the up-and-coming technology for high end iron. Both Acura and, recently, Cadillac have bundled such systems with their navigation packages, which gather their data via streaming traffic reports from detectors and cameras.

IntelliOne Technologies is currently testing 'Need4Speed,' a real-time traffic monitoring system that can gather data by tracking the movements of mobile phone users within their cars. The company is creatively using the phone's constant communication with cell towers to provide up-to-the-second traffic conditions.

According to the company, Need4Speed is more accurate than current systems, refreshing every second and proving to be accurate within 3 miles. When asked about possible privacy issues, IntelliOne states that any personal ID's from the phones are removed from its system.

An innovative way to track traffic? Or a violation or privacy? Comments are open.

[Source: Fox News]

Mobile phone to provides real-time traffic reports originally appeared on Autoblog on Sun, 13 Aug 2006 11:53:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>cell phonescellularsGPSIntelliOnenavigationreal-time trafficSun, 13 Aug 2006 11:53:00 EST<![CDATA[Custom blinker tones to replace ringtones in popularity?]]>http://www.autoblog.com/2006/04/27/custom-blinker-tones-to-replace-ringtones-in-popularity/http://www.autoblog.com/2006/04/27/custom-blinker-tones-to-replace-ringtones-in-popularity/http://www.autoblog.com/2006/04/27/custom-blinker-tones-to-replace-ringtones-in-popularity/#commentsFiled under: ,

Could it happen? CNET pundit Rafe Needleman let us know via email he asked this very question after reading a Ford press release that reveals turn signals of today emit a digital tone that has been meticulously engineered by dudes in white labcoats. In the past that familiar clicking sound that accompanied those flashing green arrows was caused by a mechanical relay. With the electronic revolution having banished nearly all mechanical operations in a car besides the engine itself, it's feasible we could be downloading custom blinker tones for our pimped rides in the very near future. 

We don't know about you, but we're planning on replacing our left blinker click with the THX intro and the right one with the startup sound a Mac makes. What about you?

[Source: CNET]

Custom blinker tones to replace ringtones in popularity? originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 27 Apr 2006 11:25:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>blinkerblinkerscellcell phonecell phonesCellPhoneCellPhonesringtoneringtonesturn signalturn signalsTurnSignalTurnSignalsThu, 27 Apr 2006 11:25:00 EST