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Highway Code stopping distances ‘woefully short’ as drivers’ thinking time underestimated

Posted: Wed Apr 04, 2018 2:21 pm
by dvenman
This article is quite interesting in some regards, but wholly misleading (IMO) in others. Who on earth is only looking 4 cars ahead...?

https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/highway-code-car-stopping-distances-wrong-drivers-thinking-time-brake-rac-a7859061.html

Re: Highway Code stopping distances ‘woefully short’ as drivers’ thinking time underestimated

Posted: Wed Apr 04, 2018 2:37 pm
by akirk
Typical Brake mis-information...
conveniently ignores the other facts:
- cars stop much much faster now than when distances were set so even if thinking distance / time should be greater, the stopping distance should be very much shorter and overall that would reduce figures...
- increasingly cars have systems which will do that stopping for you and their reaction times are much faster than humans
- no-one takes any notice of the distances or times anyway, so changing them is probably pointless...

and agree - who is looking 4 cars ahead - most drivers aren't even seeing one car ahead! :D

Alasdair

Re: Highway Code stopping distances ‘woefully short’ as drivers’ thinking time underestimated

Posted: Wed Apr 04, 2018 3:28 pm
by jont-
I think stressed Dave previously said that in his experience of accident investigation 1.5s was doing fairly well (allowing for the fact it's the dozy drivers who will be the ones needing that sort of service), but it was somewhat compensated for by brakes being better than h.c. says.

Re: Highway Code stopping distances ‘woefully short’ as drivers’ thinking time underestimated

Posted: Wed Apr 04, 2018 4:54 pm
by Horse
jont- wrote:I think stressed Dave previously said that in his experience of accident investigation 1.5s was doing fairly well


1.5s? That's quite good, really, considering that the article is dated Tuesday 25 July 2017 . . . :oops: :lol: :bash: :drums:

Re: Highway Code stopping distances ‘woefully short’ as drivers’ thinking time underestimated

Posted: Wed Apr 04, 2018 8:02 pm
by fungus
It's all accademic. There are far too many variables to state what a stopping distance is at a given speed.

1. Braking and suspension systems are far better than in the early 1960s

2. Vehicle condition

3. I agree that the reaction time of .75 of a second is for most too short, especially with the distractions available today.

4. How many people could tell you where a point 75ft or 315ft or whatever lies.

Learning a set of arbitary stopping distances there for becomes pointless unless you go out and measure the distance noting what cars, pedestrians, cylists, trees etc. look like from the chosen distance. :roll:

A few years ago I tested the stopping distance at 30mph with one of my pupils giving the instruction STOP at a point (lamp post) and then counting kerb stones back to the lamp post. The distance was approximately 51ft (17 kerb stones). I know this is not representative of real driving as the pupil knew that the instruction was iminant.

Nigel.