Sunday Times: drivers should pass close

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TonyR
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Sunday Times: drivers should pass close

Post by TonyR »

The Sunday Times has an article on driverless cars in which it says driverless cars will become as notorious as Sunday drivers for causing jams because they'll follow the Highway Code advice and not overtake a cyclist until they can leave sufficient room. The clear message they are sending is cyclists block traffic and "normal" motorists should cut them up to get past. So much for their Cities Fit for Cycling campaign.
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reohn2
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Re: Sunday Times: drivers should pass close

Post by reohn2 »

What is it with these journalist idiots! :twisted:
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Elizabethsdad
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Re: Sunday Times: drivers should pass close

Post by Elizabethsdad »

Since there driverless cars are not yet on the roads this is a just speculation on the part of whoever wrote it. I would also suggest that is pretty poor speculation - the example of not being able to get out of a T junction because the robot doesn't see the nod from the driver of the other car, it would 'see' the signal from the robot in the other car though. I thought that was one of the advantages of driverless car technology your car is in communication with the cars around it so that they can work co-operatively. As for the other examples I would sugget that remove the examples of aggressive and selfish driving such as close passes and nudging forward can only be a good thing.
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Cunobelin
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Re: Sunday Times: drivers should pass close

Post by Cunobelin »

So driver-less cars are not going to work if they are unable to drive inconsiderately and illegally?
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661-Pete
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Re: Sunday Times: drivers should pass close

Post by 661-Pete »

I presume this is the article referred to, but it's behind the paywall. Seeing as it comes from the same pigsty as the notorious piece some years ago which suggested decapitating cyclists with piano wire, I'm hardly surprised. :evil:
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Audax67
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Re: Sunday Times: drivers should pass close

Post by Audax67 »

Hardly worth getting all het up about - it's speculative fiction.
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Psamathe
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Re: Sunday Times: drivers should pass close

Post by Psamathe »

Audax67 wrote:Hardly worth getting all het up about - it's speculative fiction.

To me the harm from such articles does not come from speculation about future vehicles. The damage is in what it says to current drivers. It says that the reason traffic moves it thanks to all these drivers who ignore the Highway Code and don't give cyclists and horse riders adequate passing space. It indirectly suggests that cyclists should ride in the gutter (again, ignoring the Highway Code). It presents cyclists as a major hindrance to road users.

Damage is about "now" rather than the future (I agree it is "speculative fiction" in that regard).

I assume the various cycling organisations e.g. CTC will be complaining and getting a correction and apology printed.

Ian
TonyR
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Re: Sunday Times: drivers should pass close

Post by TonyR »

Audax67 wrote:Hardly worth getting all het up about - it's speculative fiction.


Its not the speculative fiction, it's the attitudes that created the speculative fiction that are the problem.
TonyR
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Re: Sunday Times: drivers should pass close

Post by TonyR »

661-Pete wrote:I presume this is the article referred to, but it's behind the paywall. Seeing as it comes from the same pigsty as the notorious piece some years ago which suggested decapitating cyclists with piano wire, I'm hardly surprised. :evil:


No, its this one but still behind the paywall.

Edit: seems like it's the same article even though the original headline was different.
reohn2
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Re: Sunday Times: drivers should pass close

Post by reohn2 »

Psamathe wrote:
Audax67 wrote:Hardly worth getting all het up about - it's speculative fiction.

To me the harm from such articles does not come from speculation about future vehicles. The damage is in what it says to current drivers. It says that the reason traffic moves it thanks to all these drivers who ignore the Highway Code and don't give cyclists and horse riders adequate passing space. It indirectly suggests that cyclists should ride in the gutter (again, ignoring the Highway Code). It presents cyclists as a major hindrance to road users.

Damage is about "now" rather than the future (I agree it is "speculative fiction" in that regard).

Exactly! and what I was alluding to in my first post.

I assume the various cycling organisations e.g. CTC will be complaining and getting a correction and apology printed.

Ian

I wouldn't count on it,it'll be let slide like so much other tripe printed in 'news'papers, and other media vomit spouting articles regarding cycling and cyclists.
I find such subliminal crap utterly depressing and sometimes wonder if the journos who write such rubbish know the damage they're doing,or if it's a chance to follow the Clarksonite rantings to twist the knife into a section of society,already at the butt end of his sickly humour.
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661-Pete
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Re: Sunday Times: drivers should pass close

Post by 661-Pete »

TonyR wrote:No, its this one but still behind the paywall.

Edit: seems like it's the same article even though the original headline was different.

If there is relevant text in the article, apart from that shown in the picture which has already been posted, could someone with access possibly copy and paste it? (Not the entire article).
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TonyR
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Re: Sunday Times: drivers should pass close

Post by TonyR »

Cyclists will also cause problems because a robot car would follow the letter of the Highway Code, crawling behind them as it waits for a gap equal to that when overtaking a car.
VanDriver
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Re: Sunday Times: drivers should pass close

Post by VanDriver »

Re Sunday Times attitudes: approx a couple of years ago the ST stopped referring to "road tax" in its car reviews, but after a little while, it returned to that term. As they were using one term and chnaged it back to the old, incorrect term, this surely must have been a conscious decision made by a person, which is quite puzzling. I'd really like an explanation.
Elizabethsdad
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Re: Sunday Times: drivers should pass close

Post by Elizabethsdad »

My wife's observation on a future with driverless cars is that it could lead to a lot less cars cluttering up narrow residential streets and blocking the pavements since once the car has dropped you off at your front door it can go and park itself somewhere else until wanted again.
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