7db wrote:I have been pondering this sort of thing since having a meeting with my insurers about our van insurance and the issue of trackers came up.
I think that very few accidents are caused by sharp movements and loss of control, and many more by hitting the car in front after failing to leave enough space. I wonder about a parking sensor-type technology in the front bumper, measuring distance to the vehicle ahead and factoring in speed, time to that vehicle, together with whether it is increasing or decreasing (which might be a factor of space changing or speed changing).
I'd have a simple dash light system. Green light - 3s or more. Amber light - 2-3s: flashing if decreasing. Red light - 2s or less. Flashing if decreasing. (Those times up for debate).
I'd then track amount of time in the red / amber and how much of that time is flashing (ie dangerous and driver is not doing anything to mitigate).
A blunt tool, but strikes me as a good real-world measure of the ability to maintain the safety bubble longitudinally -- and also doesn't really reflect badly on speed or acceleration per se.
jont wrote:I'm waiting for the excuses for rear end accidents - "well I didn't want to brake sharply in case the telematics gave me a red flag..."
GJD wrote:jont wrote:I'm waiting for the excuses for rear end accidents - "well I didn't want to brake sharply in case the telematics gave me a red flag..."
That's the bit about it that concerns me, particularly with newly qualified drivers. The idea of something niggling at the back of a driver's mind that hard use of the brakes might be counted against them is not something I'm comfortable with. Of course needing to brake very hard as a late reaction to something might well indicate an error, but it's an error of anticipation and planning and once the error is made, braking hard could very likely be exactly the right thing to do.
trashbat wrote:I've written about this before, but probably not on here.
I like the idea of telematics, not least because it's about individual driving behaviours rather than lumped demographics. I think that current technology probably isn't good enough, but what emergent tech is, and I think the current downsides shouldn't be terminal.
...
Regardless, I think there are interesting developments of the base telematics we have today.
Ancient wrote:Apparently other people suffer because they live in areas with many mini-roundabouts (sharp turn at 10 - 15 mph)!
Ancient wrote:I agree and was glad to be part of the trial system. I am worried however by the measurements it gave of my driving on the Brecons day. As I mentioned to the supplier, I live in an area where there are frequent sharp bends, narrow roads with passing places etc. Driving safely to be able to stop within the distance I can see to be clear (or twice that distance where relevant), if I see a hazard that requires me to stop, especially an oncoming vehicle on a narrow road - then I'll stop (and take the passing place if available) and quickly! That is good driving practice; gently braking to a halt and hoping the other driver stops in time is not!
Ancient wrote:Driving safely to be able to stop within the distance I can see to be clear (or twice that distance where relevant)
Mr Cholmondeley-Warner wrote:Ancient wrote:Driving safely to be able to stop within the distance I can see to be clear (or twice that distance where relevant)
Perhaps you could explain where twice the distance would come into play? *
* Assuming you meant half
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