

Braking Bad - lssndrdn
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/03/11/opinion/11schmidt.html?ref=opinion

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phaedrus
Quote from the article: " The only thing they had in common was an automatic
transmission."

I have an answer to this problem: ban automatic transmissions! Now, I say this
as someone who drives a stick shift and who believes that is the only Right
Way to operate a car, BUT let me give a serious logical defense of this
position:

1\. This would actually prevent the situation described in the article: modern
cars with standard transmissions require you to depress the clutch to start
the car. So if you accidently put your foot on the accelerator instead of the
brake while starting, the fact that you also have to have the clutch in to
start the car means that the engine is disconnected from the transmission. So
instead of an out-of-control vehicle you'd merely rev the engine loudly.

2\. When driving a standard transmission car, a reaction gets burned into your
brain that, any time the car does something you didn't expect, the first step
in recovery is to jab your foot down on that clutch pedal. Examples: if the
engine revs because you put it into the wrong gear, if the engine dies because
you dumped the clutch on a hill, or when you're braking to a stop, the first
thing you must do in all those situations is depress the clutch. It becomes a
reflex that you don't have to think about. So I argue that anyone used to
driving a stick shift is going to press the clutch and disengage the engine
immediately even if, or especially if, they are in a panic situation.

3\. When you take into account the actual small number of incidents compared
to the large overall population, compared to how many other ways there are to
have an accident in a car that people are NOT looking at, requiring a physical
modification to all car designs for the lockout pedal is a reaction out of
proportion to the issue. I argue that either banning automatic transmissions
or requiring a brake/accelerator pedal lockout are both outsize reactions, the
difference between them is that lazy people who drive automatics would get
upset over banning them, while putting in the lockout switch gives lazy people
who won't learn to properly operate dangerous machines the ability to be even
lazier.

At least, though, a brake/accelerator lockout switch might finally do away
with those drivers who drag their brakes all the time (one foot resting on
brake pedal while the other is on the accelerator).

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jonsen
This might be an argument against continuing the legacy of having the throttle
operated by a pedal. I've always felt uncomfortable continuously pressing the
accelerator when driving. Is it just bad legacy UI or are there arguments in
favor of operating the throttle with a foot?

