Sky-High Cyclist Fatality Rate Points to Poorly Designed Roads
In 2016, fatal hit-and-run crashes reached the highest point on record, with nearly 65 percent of the victims being bicyclists and pedestrians, according to a report by AAA Foundation of Traffic Safety.
Experts cite multiple possibilities for the increase in traffic deaths: more people on the road, distracted drivers and a growing number of bicycle commuters. There is a need to overhaul streets and roadways with a priority on pedestrian and bicyclist safety instead of the speed of motor vehicles.
Ford’s Winning Portfolio Does Not Include Sedans
Recognizing that a growing number of baby boomers and millennial car buyers favor SUVs over cars, Ford announced plans to eliminate some of the company’s most well-known cars in North America, including the Fiesta subcompact, Fusion midsize sedan, Taurus large sedan and the C-Max van.
Experts say consumers are drawn to SUVs and crossovers for their versatility. The vehicles offer more space, a higher ride off the ground and the ability to accommodate families.
"The changes will also allow the company to devote more resources to SUVs and trucks, vehicles that have surged in popularity as consumers continue to lose interest in passenger cars, which no longer have a monopoly on good gas mileage."
Read the article at The Washington Post.
More Than 100 Uber Drivers Accused on Sex Crimes
CNN found problem not limited to Uber, Lyft has issues too.
How safe is Uber is really in question now that it has been revealed by CNN that 103 Uber riders have accused drivers of sexually assault or abuse in the last four years. Some of the cases that have been successfully prosecuted have seen drivers go to jail for 80 years.
The result of the one trial and other actions are of little solace to the victims.
“You are pretty much hitchhiking with strangers,” one victim told CNN. “How many people is it going to take to get assaulted before something is done?”
At least 31 drivers have been convicted for crimes ranging from forcible touching and false imprisonment to rape, and dozens of criminal and civil cases are pending, CNN found.
Read the article in The Detroit Bureau
Lyft to Neutralize its Carbon Footprint With Multimillion Dollar Investment
To become a completely carbon-neutral transportation service, Lyft anticipates offsetting “over a million metric tons of carbon” with a multimillion-dollar investment in environmental projects elsewhere.
Lyft’s climate goals sprang up as a result of President Donald Trump’s decision to pull the US out of the Paris climate accord.
According to Lyft’s co-founders, these investments will help fund a variety of environmental and sustainability efforts. “Lyft rides are now carbon-neutral through the direct funding of emission mitigation efforts,” the company’s co-founders, Logan Green and John Zimmer, said in a blog post, “including the reduction of emissions in the automotive manufacturing process, renewable energy programs, forestry projects, and the capture of emissions from landfills.” adviser.
Read the article at The Verge.
VW Using Deal With Didi to Aid Autonomous Development
VW's new CEO Herbert Diess is pushing to cut costs and accelerate the development of new technologies.
Volkswagen’s pending partnership with Didi Chuxing to build and maintain a fleet of vehicles not only gives the Chinese behemoth a tighter grip on the ride-share market in its home country, it will accelerate VW’s development of autonomous vehicles.
As part of the deal, which is expected to be finalized next month, the German automaker will initially manage a fleet of about 100,000 new vehicles for Didi, of which two-thirds will be Volkswagen Group cars, according to Reuters.
Volkswagen will also be part of an alliance of 31 companies, including Toyota and Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi, to develop cheap, electrified vehicles for China.
Read the article in The Detroit Bureau
