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The challenge of strategizing the best route to work against the herd of other drivers can be as routine as the daily commute itself. A number of apps are out there to help shortcut one’s route and evade traffic jams. But which ones are the most accurate? And how? The All Tech Considered team put a few […]
The national seat belt use rate in 2013 was 87 percent, up slightly from 86 percent in 2012. This is a substantial increase from 58 percent in 1994. This information comes from the National Occupant Protection Use Survey (NOPUS), which is the only survey that provides nationwide probability-based observed data on seat belt use in the United States […]
The world’s first autonomous 18-wheeler is getting down to business. At a ceremony at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway on Tuesday, Gov. Brian Sandoval handed over an official Nevada license plate for use by a new Freightliner Inspiration Truck on public roads. Though a human “driver” will need to sit behind the wheel in case […]
In 2013, the use of seat belts in passenger vehicles saved an estimated 12,584 lives (occupants 5 and older), and an estimated 2,388 lives (occupants 13 and older) were saved by frontal air bags. An estimated 263 lives (child occupants 4 and younger) were saved by the use of child restraints, and 1,630 lives were saved by the use of […]
An autonomous car created by Delphi Automotive completed a 3,400-mile trip across the country this week, arriving in New York City nine days after its departure from San Francisco. The team used a modified Audi Q4 SUV (nicknamed “Roadrunner”) equipped with cameras, laser rangefinders and other high-tech goodies that let the car watch the road. After acquiring […]
Toyota is bringing automatic breaking to the masses. The company is cutting the price of automatic braking and other crash-avoidance options, a move that could greatly increase the availability of the safety features. Toyota is offering it on the Rav4, one of its top selling models. It expects to have the package available on all […]
Distractions — including chatting with a passenger, texting and grooming — were factors in nearly 60 percent of moderate-to-severe teen crashes reviewed in a study funded by the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety and conducted by the University of Iowa. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration had estimated that distraction played a role in 14 […]
Much as we’d like to emulate our NASCAR heroes, breaking the speed limit often comes at a price. Ford is hoping to prevent accidents and speeding tickets by introducing cars that can see what the speed limit is and preventing heavy-footed motorists from driving any faster. Ford’s Intelligent Speed Limiter tech will first appear on the new […]
The following is about infrastructure. Don’t nod off just yet. To be specific, it’s about pavement — basic, boring road surface. In the six decades since Interstate 70 began to creep across Missouri, how we view pavement hasn’t changed much. Now meet Tim Sylvester, 33. He sees pavement as an electronic tablet with a concrete […]
Teen Driver, which will be offered in the new 2016 Chevy Malibu, will allow parents to see how their teen did behind the wheel, including how far they drove and the number of times the car’s active safety features were engaged. One of the system’s features automatically mutes the Malibu’s radio until front-seat riders buckle […]