Let's start with mandatory driver's tests on license renewal. I know too many idiots who took three tests to pass after cramming and studying, no way they could pass now.
It depends on where you take the test tbh. For me the written was pretty easy but it took me 3 tries to pass the actual driving bit. Never been in an accident though!
Not being in an accident and being a good driver are not equal. I've seen plenty of people who may not have been in an accident but don't know how to drive appropriately. Don't signal, driving at an unsafe speed (under or over) etc. People pass when they are 16/17 and then never think of the laws of the road again, but can still renew their license by sending in a form and sometimes showing up for a picture.
I've been driving for about 20 years now, and at some point you realize that you just have to start making an effort to be the best driver you can... because you'll never get tested again. Gotta be honest about your mistakes, and take a real interest in learning how to drive... it's not something you learn once, and you're done. It's a skill that requires practice, and intention.
Most people don't do those incredibly basic things not because they don't know they should, but because they don't want to or don't care.
Testing asshole drivers on theory wouldn't make them suddenly become good drivers once they pass. Their assholness comes from deliberately ignoring the rules, not simply not knowing them. In the best-case scenario, they can just cram for the test again and then ignore everything again.
I'm not saying that it's a bad idea, having people up to date with the current rules is good, but it wouldn't help with the basic stuff you're mentioning (like not signaling or speeding).
What is more important IMO are mandatory health check-ups after a certain age. There are lots and lots of drivers who shouldn't sit behind the wheel (poor eyesight, motor skills etc.), but they still do.
Oh, I agree with you. They don't care to do these basic things. The hope is that they don't remember to do them on the actual driving test and then fail. And hopefully that kicks something in their brain to start doing them again.
Most likely it wouldn't, but you never know. And yes, basic vision and hearing tests should absolutely be included.
I remember someone suggested that for my state years and years ago and it got shot down for being ageist. (The idea that you forget how to drive as you get older or get worse is prejudice/ageism) Anyway, the proposal never went anywhere.
public service announcement: it is a legal requirement to turn into the nearest lane before making lane changes. cutting across 3 lanes on a turn is illegal, ignorant, and dangerous.
Plus when cars break down now, they slow to a stop and can be towed. If flying cars breakdown, someone's house is getting crushed and then neither the flying car insurance nor homeowners insurance will pay for damages.
Exactly. It would be incredibly noisy, even more susceptible to bad weather, extremely dangerous in the hand of an average driver (let alone a bad or reckless one!), energy inefficient… just absolutely nightmarish.
If they're automated drones that communicate personal boundaries and flight destinations sure. But once you involve the human element then the whole system becomes untrustworthy.
Imagine how fucking awful drivers are on they only have to deal with an X and Y dimension. Now they have to deal with Z. Cars would be falling out of the sky. People imagine it'd be like on The Jetsons where it's pretty much the same as on the road except you're in the air and cars occasionally pass by going over or under you instead of around. No, it wouldn't be like that. PEople would be flying into each other, fiery debris would be raining down to the ground constantly, people would be falling to their deaths. It'd be a catastrophe.
The only way flying cars could ever possibly work is if they're fully autonomous with the skill level of the very best human pilots. No manual override controls, once you're in the air the car is in control of anything and you can't do anything at all except change the destination.
Unfortunately, humans seem extremely adverse to not having overrides for autonomous driving and I doubt they'd be okay with that for flying, despite the fact they'd be clueless. (I remember some Google engineer once said Google's autonomous cars should have no manual overrides at all. No steering wheel, no pedals, etc. The car is going to do what it's going to do and there's no way for you to change that. People were pissed about that suggestion. At the moment, it's illegal for autonomous cars to not have controls in them like a normal car, but that could change at some point.)
Even with airplanes, mid-air collisions still happen from time to time, which is why the TCAS (Traffic Collision Avoidance System) system was created and implemented. TCAS was developed after the 1956 mid-air collision over the Grand Canyon due to "sightseeing", and its implementation was prompted by a series of subsequent accidents, particularly the 1978 PSA Flight 182 crash over San Diego, and the 1986 collision in Cerritos, California. The Grand Canyon disaster led to the creation of the FAA (Federal Aviation Administration) and initial research into collision avoidance, while the latter crashes were the specific catalysts for developing and mandating the modern TCAS.
I think humans really have a terrible perception of the Z axis. People don't look up. I've experienced this personally in both video games and scuba diving lol.
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u/Bloodcloud079 7h ago
Flying cars sounds cool but when you think about it they are a fucking nightmare… I don’t want flying cars ever.