Yet another reason to park the SUV: 1 person a day dies from back overs

[katinmn]

If energy conservation isn't reason enough....

SUV blind spots can be deadly

From Kids and Cars
http://www.kidsandcars.org/

snip--

Her data indicate that so-called back-over accidents - in which a driver backs over a person - are up to about one death a day, or 300 to 400 fatalities a year in the United States.

And Fennell believes that, unless safety regulators at the National Highway Safety Administration in Washington start to focus on this issue, there won't be an interest in addressing it.

Worse, Fennell fears that - as more of us drive taller vehicles such as sport utility vehicles, pickup trucks, vans and crossovers, which can have large blind spots - we will remain ignorant of the dangers these vehicles pose to others, particularly children.

[TNDemo]

1. They are also a real pain to park beside because you

can't see to back up. Same thing with vans. You just back up slowly and hope you don't get hit.

[katinmn]

2. Tell me about it. I used to used to drive a Geo Metro

[Postmanx]

3. My Lexus

Addressed this issue with a little camera mounted above the rear license plate. Parallel parking was never so easy!

[Lone Pawn]

4. Do we have statistics as to how more common backovers are with SUV's?

Or is this just alarmism or what?

[katinmn]

6. Large vehicles have bigger blind spots

Just stands to reason.

There was a report that says the SUVs were responsible for a growing number. It's on the kids and cars website.

[Lone Pawn]

7. It's true they have a blind spot

but I don't want to get all pissed off and start working to make this common wisdom if there's a chance it's not true.

And "Growing Number" could mean 3% to 4% for all we know.

[jdj]

5. I guess Lizzie Grubman is an over-achiever. Or maybe

she had a busy couple of weeks lined up and decided to take out all of hers at once.

Lizzie Grubman, media critic
Filed under Media
SUV-wielding flack Lizzie Grubman complained while speaking on a panel titled, “Are the Media Eating the East End Alive?” that the press inaccurately reported her story (“my accident,” as she calls it) last year when she backed into several Conscience Point onlookers with her dad’s Mercedes. I wonder which part of “Lizzie Grubman backed her daddy’s SUV into several people because she was angry” was inaccurate. Unless, of course, “because she was angry” really should have been “because she was coked up.” Not that I’m saying she was…

http://www.gawker.com/news/media/lizzie-grubman-media-critic-012745.php