In Hong Kong you see road signs like "use low gear", "stay in low gear". You never see that in Sweden.
On the one hand it feels like an insult to drivers; Anyone with a license obviously knows how to use the engine for braking.
On the other hand the driving professional handling this bus is clearly relying entirely on brakes.
On the third hand that just shows the sign to be useless anyway.
Same sequence with "cyclists dismount".
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uhmmm
in reply to clacke: exhausted pixie dream boy πΈπͺππ°ππ • • •if you're not acquainted with the road, the indication about the gear can be useful
in some car competition the pilot is sided by a person who's there exactly to remind the pilot about how the coming curve is and what gear to use
uhmmm
in reply to uhmmm • • •I usually drive a small Toyota and it has a blinking light on the dashboard indicating me to low the gear or to higher it up
I appreciate that π€·ββοΈ
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uhmmm
in reply to uhmmm • • •on another side, someimes I think "if you know so well what I should do with the gear, you should also operate the gear yourself"
but that's a different issue
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Elena ``of Valhalla''
in reply to uhmmm • •I also drive a Toyota, and my perception is that the indicator is pretty good at making you use less fuel (great), much less so at driving on hilly roads (you're already struggling going uphill and slowly losing speed in fourth gear, why are you suggesting that I switch to fifth? WHY?)
@uhmmm @a Claes unto himself πΈπͺππ°ππ
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uhmmm
in reply to Elena ``of Valhalla'' • • •It's tuned on extreme saving of fuel
You're free to not follow Its suggestions π
Elena ``of Valhalla''
in reply to uhmmm • •and I appreciate it. usually.
say, every time I'm driving on a street with less than 10% incline :)
the fact that I live in an area of the world that is somewhat flat surface challenged doesn't help :D
@uhmmm @a Claes unto himself πΈπͺππ°ππ
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clacke: exhausted pixie dream boy πΈπͺππ°ππ
in reply to uhmmm • • •@uhmmm I see your point, but this was on a highway and a change like that doesn't happen suddenly. If the driver doesn't notice it's a downslope they won't notice the sign and also shouldn't be driving.
Rally circumstances do not apply. =)
Elena ``of Valhalla''
in reply to clacke: exhausted pixie dream boy πΈπͺππ°ππ • •wouldn't a gradual change be *harder* to detect than a sudden one?
@a Claes unto himself πΈπͺππ°ππ @uhmmm
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clacke: exhausted pixie dream boy πΈπͺππ°ππ
in reply to Elena ``of Valhalla'' • • •@Elena ``of Valhalla'' Haha, good point. But a sudden change might merit advance warning, which is more like what @uhmmm was talking about in the rally scenario.
Anyway, if you notice you have to brake a lot, going a gear lower should be instinct.
Elena ``of Valhalla''
in reply to clacke: exhausted pixie dream boy πΈπͺππ°ππ • •with my old car, if I noticed I was braking a lot the instinct was to turn the AC on :D
(really, the ability of both my previous and current cars to engine brake was and is pretty limited, and even at low gears I still have to give a small nudge to the brakes quite often, but with the old one turning on the AC improved it a perceptible bit)
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clacke: exhausted pixie dream boy πΈπͺππ°ππ
in reply to Elena ``of Valhalla'' • • •clacke: exhausted pixie dream boy πΈπͺππ°ππ
in reply to clacke: exhausted pixie dream boy πΈπͺππ°ππ • • •Come to think of it Sweden does have signs with an illustration of a slope and numbers indicating the incline, like 20%.
But the only signs I can think of that have imperative text like a backseat driver are stop signs and very specific signs like "Pay attention to frequent emergency traffic". Otherwise they're all declarative and just show this and that rule, limitation or warning applies to this area.
@uhmmm
Marcin CieΕlak
in reply to clacke: exhausted pixie dream boy πΈπͺππ°ππ • • •clacke: exhausted pixie dream boy πΈπͺππ°ππ
in reply to Marcin CieΕlak • • •Marcin CieΕlak
in reply to clacke: exhausted pixie dream boy πΈπͺππ°ππ • • •Elias MΓ₯rtenson
in reply to clacke: exhausted pixie dream boy πΈπͺππ°ππ • • •this happens in countries where people don't learn to drive a manual.
We'll see if things change when people start learning on EV's. I barely touch the brake at all when I drive mine. There are two paddle switches on the steering wheel where I can control the amount of braking from the motor, and I can use it to come to a complete stop.
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Doc Edward Morbius ββ
in reply to clacke: exhausted pixie dream boy πΈπͺππ°ππ • • •I've known people who've failed this in various ways.
On a camping trip, one friend descended a long grade using brakes, which were smoking / soft by the end. I explained about downshifting, which, yes, is possible even with automatic transmissions.
(I drive gearbox, drop into whatever low gear allows me to stay off brakes, and am often using the gas pedal rather than brake for adjustment as I ride compressions down.)
(It's actually not engine compression but throttle-body vacuum which is generating the braking, BTW. Engine comression is a net neutral as what's compressed is then expanded and expelled.)
Another friend borrowed a minivan for a move and managed to leave the parking brake on at highway speeds for 20 miles.
Very heat Such smoke Wow ...
We figured that the best way to cool the brake rims was to drive at speed for another few minutes. (Parking brake sets rear braks, most actual driving stopping force comes from front, so safety-wise, this was reasonable.)
Nobody ever went broke understimating the intelligence of the (driving) public.
Keep the signage.
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vt
in reply to Doc Edward Morbius ββ • • •Agreed. Keep the sign Just because one driver isn't able to make use of it doesn't mean it isn't useful to other drivers.
It's not always obvious in the moment how steep or long a grade is. If there's lateral curve to the road you might not be able to see how far down this stretch takes you.
So the sign gives some indication of that in addition to the function of saying what to do.
There's a lot of information coming in and quickly when driving, including trying to keep an eye on that asshole tailgating you so something that cuts the cognitive load with high signal content is good.
@dredmorbius @clacke
Doc Edward Morbius ββ
in reply to vt • • •Weather, darkness, unfamiliarity, and simple reasons of liability or accountability might also be factors.
And argue for signage.
@clacke
clacke: exhausted pixie dream boy πΈπͺππ°ππ
in reply to vt • • •Doc Edward Morbius ββ
in reply to clacke: exhausted pixie dream boy πΈπͺππ°ππ • • •That's the cost.
Given the benefit, the objection is specious.
@vt
clacke: exhausted pixie dream boy πΈπͺππ°ππ
in reply to Doc Edward Morbius ββ • • •Doc Edward Morbius ββ
in reply to clacke: exhausted pixie dream boy πΈπͺππ°ππ • • •Please untag me from this conversation.
Thanks.
LinuxWalt (@lnxw48a1) {3EB165E0-5BB1-45D2-9E7D-93B31821F864}
in reply to clacke: exhausted pixie dream boy πΈπͺππ°ππ • •I would say that the practices in the country where this stretch of road is located play a very big role. For example, in the US, a lot of our highways have big ugly billboards along the roadside. Some of those are now the lighted electronic signs that flash and move. In that situation, some drivers may already be near their limit of mental processing.
We also have state highway departments running scrolling text signs to warn of temporary road conditions, AMBER alerts, and even sloganeering ("buzzed driving is drunk driving; if we catch you, you'll get a free stay in our hotel", "wear your seatbelt; click it or ticket", and so on). As much as I favor seatbelts and detest impaired driving, I really wish they would not distract drivers with their slogans.
On the other hand, in a nation where such tomfoolery is not allowed, a safety sign may be able to safely be placed in that location.
LinuxWalt (@lnxw48a1) {3EB165E0-5BB1-45D2-9E7D-93B31821F864}
in reply to LinuxWalt (@lnxw48a1) {3EB165E0-5BB1-45D2-9E7D-93B31821F864} • •Doc Edward Morbius ββ
in reply to Doc Edward Morbius ββ • • •