Leonardo Manavella has invented a new product to bring cyclist-hating automobile drivers to their knees in death-gripping pain!
Just kidding. He has however invented another form of bicycle safety that creates a safety zone around the cyclist not only alerting drivers of the cyclist, but also alerting the cyclist when a vehicle enters his zone through a series of horns.
It's interesting, but I'm not sure of being very practical. Who wants flashing lights and sirens when a car passes too close to you? Nothing will teach drivers about respect for cyclists until they are behind the handlebars of a bike themselves.
Read more about it here, over at Ecofriend.
Comments
I think I disagree with you on the practicality of this. The auto-horn sound would be at LEAST as practical as an Air Zound, the key is to have it acoustically pointed (probably behind and / or to the left) to annoy the driver who is infringing rather than the bicyclist. Also, if the "halo" could be tweaked to minimum passing clearance (in KS that's 4ft rather than the more common 3 ft), it could help alert drivers to the bicyclists rights.
Of course, this also depends on the size of the unit(s).
Then again, I think there's some practicality to a three foot pole with a spike on the end to it in order to remind drivers to pass at a safe distance. ;)
Posted by: jdmitch | April 23, 2009 11:54 AM
hmmm where i have i seen this before...
here?
Posted by: oneangrytoast | April 23, 2009 12:00 PM
I agree, this isn't that practical. What if I'm the one weaving through traffic? What if I'm on a street with no bike lane, passing parked cars closely? These horns would have to be pretty loud for someone in a car to take notice, and at that point the sound would probably spook the cyclist into yanking the handlebars or something.
Posted by: Andrew | April 23, 2009 1:24 PM
hahaha, oneangrytoast, that's the first thing i thought of when i saw the illustration. the siren should be play bad techno.
Posted by: chris | April 23, 2009 2:23 PM