Boy hit by hybrid car; mom says he didn't hear it coming

KARE11.com ^ | 5/7/08 | Boyd Huppert

[ButThreeLeftsDo]

It was something that had never occurred to Jane Flannigan, until she got the call Sunday that her eight-year-old son had been hit by a car while biking with a friend.

Owen Erickson was not badly hurt, though he did end up on the hood of the car. But when the car's driver moved his Toyota Prius from the street to the curb, Flannigan noticed something. "I saw the car, but I could not hear anything," she recalled about the hybrid vehicle which was operating on battery power at the time. "It is totally silent."

That's when it dawned on Flannigan, Owen never heard the Prius before he cut in front of it. "Bikers, runners, anybody out on the street, I think it's a huge safety issue," she said.

She's not the only one. Last month legislation was introduced in the U.S. House of Representative that could eventually require hybrids to emit a minimum amount of noise.

It's a priority piece of legislation for the National Federation of the Blind, which believes Hybrids pose a real threat to those who rely on noise from cars to keep themselves safe.

"These quiet cars that are very difficult to hear in the normal flow of everyday outdoor activity play a safety hazard," says Jennifer Dunnam, president of the NFB's Minnesota affiliate. "Blind people depend on their hearing to know what the traffic is doing."

Toyota has not taken a position on the legislation, but is aware of the concerns behind it. "We do have to step back and take a look," said John Hanson, Toyota's national manager of environmental, safety and quality communications. The Prius ranks third among Toyota models in sales, behind Camry and Corolla, according the Hanson.

Flannigan doesn't blame the driver of the Prius for running into her son, since Owen biked out in front of his car but she does cut her son some slack. "We're conditioned to hear car noises," she says. "This is a big safety issue."

[ButThreeLeftsDo]

Video at link.

They're sneaking up on us.....

[KoRn]

A silent killer!

These will be worse than SUVs!!

[Long Island Pete]

Loud pipes saves lives.

[AppyPappy]

That MP3 player didn’t help either.

[Tax-chick]

Flannigan doesn't blame the driver of the Prius for running into her son, since Owen biked out in front of his car

Why, how kind of her.

[CarrotAndStick]

Fisker Karma hybrid sports car to generate motor noise through external speakers

 

You know how we love the electric cars around here, but internal combustion sure does sound sexy -- a big V-8 literally brings the noise in a way the nearly-silent whir of an electric motor can't hope to match. Well, it looks like the mad geniuses behind the $80,000 Fisker Karma plug-in hybrid have hit upon an appropriately high-tech solution: speakers placed inside and out that allow drivers to give their rides any sound they want, including one described as "like something between a Formula One car and a jet plane." Interesting, to be sure -- but seeing as the Karma can hit 125mph and go from 0-60 in six seconds, we'd be happier if that rig just screamed at people to get out of the left lane.

http://www.engadget.com/2008/03/14/fisker-karma-hybrid-sports-car-to-generate-motor-noise-through-e/

 

[Arkansas Toothpick]

How about we install those little speakers that you find on ice cream trucks?

“Pop goes the weasel”, “Mary had a little lamb” ... all day long.

[L98Fiero]

“That’s when it dawned on Flannigan, Owen never heard the Prius before he cut in front of it. “Bikers, runners, anybody out on the street, I think it’s a huge safety issue,” she said.”

Oh, you mean those people who always have the I-Pod jamming or a phone to their ear? How exactly is this going to make them safer? Freaking idiots. All the things wrong with this country and our lawmakers are conderned that cars are not loud enough. Retards.

[weegee]

Why not just put some trading cards in the spokes in the wheel?

[Joe Brower]

Apparently it hasn't occurred to the kid or the mom that perhaps looking over one's shoulder before swerving into the street might be a good idea.

[weegee]

“Feeelings, whoaa whoaaaaa Feeelings....”

[GeorgiaDawg32]

so I guess the kid was blind too and didn’t see a silent car coming?

[Red Badger]

...legislation was introduced in the U.S. House of Representative that could eventually require hybrids to emit a minimum amount of noise.

It's for the children.......

[ButThreeLeftsDo]

One doesn’t know anymore whether to laugh or cry when hearing these stories....

[Kozak]

Wonder how how much damage the kid did to the “roller skate”?

[Ben Chad]

You beat me by 2 minutes.

[Dustoff45]

How about we install those little speakers that you find on ice cream trucks?

I was thinking one of those little Ring-A-Ding, Bike Bells might be a better fit for the little car>

[Red Badger]

The one here plays “Fur Elise” and “The Sting” and “Do You Ears Hang Low?”.............

[CholeraJoe]

Gives a whole new meaning to the expression, “Silent but deadly.”

[Tax-chick]

Kids never look - including mine. He *might* have noticed a big hulking Chevy with a busted muffler, *if* he didn’t have his headphones up so loud he couldn’t hear the Trump of Doom.

She should just be grateful her son didn’t die of his own carelessness.

[NonValueAdded]

Is momma genuinely concerned or just priming the lawsuit? And please, please, please, let not the solution be the backup alarm changed to function for all directions of travel.

[Southerngl]

Well, it does kind of moot the ‘Stop, look and listen”. We live on the top of a hill. My kids have learned to stop and listen when crossing the street to get the mail. A hybrid on battery would not be heard and they wouldn’t be seen until they were on the hill and too late.

Must think about this.

[Kozak]

The feds need to MANDATE these

Whistle Tips

It's FOR THE CHILDREN!

[theDentist]

Great Idea!!! And when they make silent motorcycles, bikers will do the same!!!

[BenLurkin]

Indeed. The greedy plaintiff lawyers will concoct any kind of bull just to juice up their lawsuits.

[Bringbackthedraft]

OK,class action law suit time. Mandate the installation of custom digital sound effects i.e. Harley Roar, Glass Pack Humm, NASCAR Zoom, or the ever present ear drum busting rap BOOM BOOM BOOM.

[Niteranger68]

Is it invisible too???

[Dixie Yooper]

With young kids, riding on streets is dangerous regardless of what of noise the approaching car is making. When they try to look over their shoulder, they swerve in the same direction. If you yell to alert them they look over their shoulder and swerve. If the car toots the horn, they look over their shoulder and swerve. If they hear the car coming, they tend to look over their shoulder and swerve. I have an 8 and 5 year old and live in a quite neighborhood. Every time we ride on the street it's a nerve racking experience keeping them on the right side of the road and getting them to fear moving cars.

[daku]

if we get to choose, how about the air car from the jetsons

[F-117A]

Silent but deadly!

Perhaps Toyota should rename their car.

[KarlInOhio]

Add in the Jetson's car sound. Even though you can't have flying cars, you can still sound like you have one.

http://faultgame.com/images/jetsons5.wav

http://faultgame.com/images/jetsons4.wav

[ButThreeLeftsDo]

“Is it invisible too???”

Evidently....

[ravingnutter]

“Pop goes the weasel”, “Mary had a little lamb” ... all day long.

NOOOOOOOOOOOOO! Our old office had a used car lot next door and an icecream truck would stop there every day and just sit there and play music. Fortunately for the driver, my employer would not allow me to carry my .45 Ruger on the property. That absolutely drove me nuts!

[a real Sheila]

can’t they put some of those deer whistler thingies on them? How fast must a vehicle move to make those things whistle?

[ButThreeLeftsDo]

Much faster than residential speeds.

Oh, wait, it was discovered that they didn’t work, at all. People continued to hit deer at a regular pace, whistles or not...

[RetSignman]

How about the the ‘Hillary Cackle’?

[Jaded]

I could but stare.

[babygene]

That wouldn’t be problem in our neighborhood. You could hear the car stereo half way down the block.

Anyway. Easy to fix... Put a speaker on the outside with the sound of an engine playing.

[gridlock]

“We had joy, we had fun, we had seasons in the sun....”

[stayathomemom]

I had a runner (college student) cross 20 ft. in front of me a couple of weeks ago. She didn’t look for traffic and had earphones in her ears. I had to stop suddenly and it caused my car to stall. She looked back when she heard me restart my car. I should have gotten out and yelled at her, instead I glared at her for about five seconds.

[Braak]

Sadly, not surprised...a coworker almost mowed me down with her Prius. Yeah, the things are that damned quiet.

[whatexit]

If a Prius crashes in the forest, does it make as sound?

[Kickass Conservative]

Install a Hillary Cackler. You can hear it a mile away.

[AppyPappy]

College students usually have right of way on college campuses. We’ve had several get hit because they walked in front of a car.

[QQQQ]

Actually,I contacted Toyota few years ago about Prius.I was in local Toyota dealership and one of the sales people was pulling Prius out of the showroom.The sun was in his face.One of the costumers(old lady) couldn't hear the car coming.Outcome was a broken hip.I bet Toyota can install some warning device when the engine is not running.

[tubebender]

STOP...LOOK...LISTEN_________?

[Appleby]

The Audi R10TDI (the “whispering Audi”) had the same problem the first year it ran; other race cars could not hear it, and those of us covering pit stops did not know it was coming in until it was in. I also saw one nudge a TV cameraman out of its pit box, tipping him on his heinie but not hurting him, because he was not aware that the thing was headed toward him at 60 mph until he found himself seated on the pavement. (He got to his feet faster than the car had come in.)

I agree, though, with the people who wonder if his iPod wasn’t cranked up to Eleven, since we have had kids killed by oncoming freight trains that they could not hear over the deafening volume of their Binkies. Likely the entire GrabbyBaby Generation will be deaf before the last one turns 30.

[Jaded]

At a tv station who’s call letters are “KARE” and a reporter with 26 names. How sweet.

It could play this little ditty from outside speakers.

Kum ba yah, my lord, Kum ba yah!
Kum ba yah, my lord, Kum ba yah!
Kum ba yah, my lord, Kum ba yah.
O Lord, Kum ba yah

[dead]

“KKRRRRRR...WATCH the Tram car please! Watch the tram car please... KKRRRRR WATCH the Tram car please! Watch the tram car please...”

[babygene]

” I have an 8 and 5 year old and live in a quite neighborhood. Every time we ride on the street it’s a nerve racking experience keeping them on the right side of the road and getting them to fear moving cars. ‘

i have grandkids that age, I know what you mean... Around here your not suppose to ride a bike on the sidewalk. My position has always been “go for the ticket”, it’s better than getting run over by a truck.