While a silent vehicle may be easy on the ears, it could be dangerous to pedestrians and cyclists, according to researchers who are working to develop a sound for silent electric vehicles.
Pedestrians and cyclists are twice as likely to be hit by a hybrid electric vehicle running silently at low speed than by a car with a normal engine, according to the U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Now, it’s up to researchers to decide whether the sound should be similar to the familiar internal combustion car, a space ship or even a bird.
“We want…to investigate sounds that are going to be safe, have minimal effect on the environment and are going to give some creativity to the manufacturers,” said Warwick University Professor Paul Jennings to news reports.
The researchers are working to develop sounds for electric vehicles that portray the sound of a normal vehicle idling, accelerating or braking.
As a Seattle car accident attorney, I find it interesting that new car technology has to revert backward to make pedestrians and bicyclists safer. I’m glad researchers were able to learn the statistics on how sound effects car accidents before personal injuries occurred. I look forward to learning more about how these researchers are preventing car accidents and what sounds they come up with.
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