I resisted blogging about this before due its controversial nature, but now that it seems to be gaining momentum in the U.K. ( http://www.engadget.com/2008/08/07/lotus-safe-and-sound-technology-gives-hybrids-a-voice/ ) I feel I must speak up. The issue is putting artificial noise into electric/hybrid vehicles because they don't make enough noise for pedestrians to notice them in the same way they would conventional vehicles. The argument is that people, especially the blind and children, use auditory clues to detect that vehicles are approaching. There is no doubt that this is true. There is also no doubt that vehicles that make little or no noise present a new danger for those who depend solely or primarily on their hearing to identify oncoming vehicles. But the solution is not to make quiet vehicles LOUD! We finally have the technology to eliminate the second greatest type of pollution created by automobiles (noise), and we are going to take a step backwards by adding the noise back in. Absurdity. The simple fact is that all people will now have to realize that their hearing is not the reliable tool it once was to detect traffic. Children will need to be trained to ALWAYS look before crossing the street, and not to depend on whether they can hear a car. Animal assistants will need to be trained to always look, and not depend on their ears.It makes we wonder about when America transitioned from horse-drawn buggies to automobiles. People had to get used to the fact that cars traveled faster, and they had to anticipate that greater speed. Pedestrians had to retrain themselves for crossing the street. Did anyone suggest that automobiles should not be allowed to travel any faster than carriages so that no one had to change their habits? I hope not.
Imagine what long-term effects quieter cars will have. Homes near roads will not be nearly as undesirable as before. If there is a highway on the other side of a treeline you won't even know it is there. And that is just the beginning.
Again, I am sympathetic to the issue. I just don't agree that the solution is to negate the progress.
