Neighborhood Electric Vehicles

[LuciferSam]

Why don't we make it legal for these to run on the bike path then? All the problems mentioned here would be addressed.

On the bike path these vehicles are dangerous monstrosities. They do not fit in. They are only appropriate on certain stretches of road where the appropriate speed limit is 25 mph or less. Then they need to get out of the way since they lack the ability to lead or follow.

 

[nr light]

This is some information from an article I came across in my research of Low Speed Vehicles.
I found it pertinent to our conversation here.

March 2008, "World Wide Situation of Low Speed Vehicles"
Prepared for the Ministry of Transportation of Quebec
by The Quebec Advanced Transportation Institute

"The objective of this document is to provide the most recent information on the evolution of LSV in the regions studied and to identify the trends toward the integration of these vehicles in the ordinary traffic flow. The United States, certain European Union countries, Japan and Australia were targeted because of their experiences with this type of vehicle. Technical standards, traffic rules, the market, road accident data will be studied in detail and the opinions of specialists will be reported."

"During our research and interviews with the government authorities in the concerned countries, no exceptional accidents or worrisome statistics regarding the LSV were brought to our attention. In most cases, it does not raise major concerns in the countries and states that authorized its use on public roads."

"The only road accident statistics available are French and are provided by the Observatoire national interminist?riel de la S?curit? Routi?re (OSNIR). They show that the rate of LSV involved in traffic accidents is low. The number of victims is also low. The vast majority of accidents have been recorded on the 90 km/h networks, mainly on roads that connect rural areas, where 82% of deaths were recorded in 2005 as opposed to 17% in urban areas. LSV have four times less victims than mopeds."

"Many experiments in a real use environment demonstrated the interest and reliability of LSV. The conclusions of these experiments on various continents and in various use environments were positive (improvement of air quality, speed reduction) and all state that the LSV provides a mobility alternative that is ecological and complements the global offer."

According to the last table and figures, we note that:
? LSVs have a low ratio of people killed: an average of 25 dead per year over the last six years for a total of 140,000 vehicles in operation, that is, an average ratio of 0.017. The ratio increases to 0.037 people killed per million kilometers travelled if we take into consideration their annual average mileage.
? LSVs cause four times less victims than the mopeds (who travel at the same speed on the same type of roads).

There were no road accident data for LSVs in the United States processed, however, during our research and meetings with the US authorities (NHTSA, IIHS), no major accident was mentioned.

Ideally, the LSV could become the urban vehicle par excellence and inspire municipal environments to modify their streets in order to prevent speeds higher than the speed limit in cities, so that all users may travel safely and better share public roads while reducing accidents caused by excessive speeds.

It really is an interesting article for those of you who are passionate about this subject (as you seem to be, on the this and other forum pages). If you would like to read it all here is the link: http://www.itaq.qc.ca/pdf/LSV_ITAQ.pdf


Also, Lake View Too,
In this article there are SEVERAL communities and cities where LSVs have become THE mode of transportation. Several cities in California & Florida are mentioned. I have also found links where new charging stations are being implemented along rural highways across the nation, suggesting increased LSV traffic in those areas. NC was the most recent.

Enjoy!

 

[scooterbug44]

LSV accident stats from several years ago in France don't really address their misuse/the reality of having them on 30-A.

SUV's, children driving, semis/large delivery vehicles sharing the same road, and golf carts copying LSV behavior are rare in French cities IMO.

Mopeds are also VERY common, which IMO accounts for their higher accident stats. (I am not sure they are truly safe vehicles on 30-A either - especially when driven by unhelmeted tourists.)

 

[AndrewG]

It's important to note that lowering speed limits on 30-a would most likely reduce accidents. If safety is really the concern here then lsv friendly roads's are the way to go.

I'm not aware of a single study where higher speeds resulted in less accidents or deaths.

 

[nr light]

LSV accident stats from several years ago in France don't really address their misuse/the reality of having them on 30-A.

SUV's, children driving, semis/large delivery vehicles sharing the same road, and golf carts copying LSV behavior are rare in French cities IMO.

Mopeds are also VERY common, which IMO accounts for their higher accident stats. (I am not sure they are truly safe vehicles on 30-A either - especially when driven by unhelmeted tourists.)

Scooterbug, please read the article. Those conclusions are based on percentages, where actual numbers of vehicles and ratio was taken into place. Please, educate yourself is all I am saying.

I'm sure you didn't want me to post the entire 76 page article, that I myself took the time to read and share with you...but if you would like to comment on it, I do think you should read it

 

[scooterbug44]

I did carefully read your post - basically it said noone is really keeping track, not much info is available, and then cites France as the only source for statistics or comparisons.

The vastly different conditions between France and 30A do not make that a good example. Compare the drunk driving arrests between France and Sowal. Compare the average vehicle weights. Compare the driving restrictions. Compare the accident rates.

A search for statistics on people killed by juggling a chainsaw while riding an unicycle in Norway in 2007 show that there were no fatalities and not even minor injuries were reported. No data for the US was readily available. (Seriously, I googled it just to make sure).

That does not mean juggling chainsaws while riding an unicycle is safe, or that we want it to be encouraged on our local roadways.

I know that seems like a far-fetched example, but IMO you are comparing apples to pistachios because 30-A is such a unique vehicular environment.

My objections are based on daily observations of conditions on 30-A and the behavior of drivers of all vehicles - including a few LSV drivers.

Yes, some of those LSV drivers obey the rules/laws. Yes, many other drivers and bikers do not.

But I see NO reason to add new safety hazards into an already confused and dangerous environment when safer and environmentally friendly options exist.

 

[AndrewG]

The #1 safest option is to lower the speed limits for all vehicles.

 

[Geo]

The #1 safest option is to lower the speed limits for all vehicles.

Actually- I believe discontinuing the use of all motor vehicles and all outdoor activities including swimming would be safest.

This subject is ridonkulous.

The way it is supposed to work:

If you own an LSV you shouldn't drive it on rural county highways or rural stretches of county highways where the speed limit exceeds 35MPH.

The way it is isn't supposed to work:

You own an LSV and you want to drive it on a rural county highway or rural stretch of a county highway where the speed limit exceeds 35MPH so you come up with a bunch of nonsensical reasons for changing the speed limit to accomodate your desire to drive your LSV on said roadway.

 

[AndrewG]

Actually- I believe discontinuing the use of all motor vehicles and all outdoor activities including swimming would be safest.

This subject is ridonkulous.

The way it is supposed to work:

If you own an LSV you shouldn't drive it on rural county highways or rural stretches of county highways where the speed limit exceeds 35MPH.

The way it is isn't supposed to work:

You own an LSV and you want to drive it on a rural county highway or rural stretch of a county highway where the speed limit exceeds 35MPH so you come up with a bunch of nonsensical reasons for changing the speed limit to accomodate your desire to drive your LSV on said roadway.

Didn't Peachtree City, GA amend the law for golf carts only? Just as ridonkulous to say that ambulances wouldn't be able to get through during an emergency.

You can't say LSV's should be banned due to safety concerns when in fact lsv use is more likely to increase safety.

 

[30ashopper]

Didn't Peachtree City, GA amend the law for golf carts only? Just as ridonkulous to say that ambulances wouldn't be able to get through during an emergency.

You can't say LSV's should be banned due to safety concerns when in fact lsv use is more likely to increase safety.

Why don't we just pass a local ordinance requiring everyone to ride a bicycle? I mean really, why stop at 35 MPH speed limits?

I say golf carts should be given control of bike paths. We then add a small strip along the side of the path at minimal cost for bikes funded by a local green tax levied on all property owners along 30A, starting with Geo and Scooterbug.