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http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0, ... 55,00.html



Windscreen frames create deadly blind spots in cars

By Ben Webster, Transport Correspondent

MANY modern cars, including some popular small models, have blind spots that result in drivers pulling out at junctions without seeing an approaching vehicle, according to a Government report obtained by The Times.

It condemns European safety rules on visibility because they are based on an average-sized man and fail to take account of the viewing positions of smaller or taller drivers.

The blind spots are caused by the spars that frame the front windscreen, known as the A pillars. These have been thickened in recent years to stop the main structure crumpling in crashes and to accommodate airbags. Manufacturers have also lengthened the pillars to produce sleeker designs. A loophole in the rules allows longer pillars to be thicker.

The report contradicts previous research, which suggested that the problem was largely confined to people carriers and 4X4s.

The researchers reconstructed ten crashes in which a driver claimed not to have seen a vehicle before colliding with it. They found that A pillars in a Ford Ka, a Renault Clio and a Vauxhall Corsa may have contributed to crashes.

The report, produced for the Department for Transport by the Transport Research Laboratory, was completed in March but has yet to be published. It says that smaller drivers have a particular problem in seeing around the pillars because they sit closer to them and their line of sight intersects with the thicker base.

It concludes that the pillars could obscure the view of approaching vehicles for several seconds, meaning that drivers might not see them even if they look more than once: “The work to date highlights that car A-pillar obscuration could be a contributory factor in some road traffic crashes. Collisions potentially associated with A pillars were significantly more likely to occur at T-junctions and are more likely to involve car drivers failing to see vulnerable road users (motorcyclists, pedal cyclists and pedestrians).”

Safe Speed, the road safety campaign group, said that the department appeared to be reluctant to take action despite receiving clear evidence that A pillars were causing serious crashes. Paul Smith, the group’s founder, said: “The department has sat on this report for half a year despite knowing that these blind spots are killing people.”

Spen King, a former chief engineer at Rover who has been campaigning for years to get the department and car industry to take the problem seriously, said: “Manufacturers take advantage of the weak rules to go for style rather than safety. We urgently need research on the cost of crashes caused by A pillars to establish a clear basis for tightening the rules.”

A spokesman for the department said: “It looks like there could be a problem but we are still collecting evidence. We are not going to alarm people until we fully understand what is going on.”

The Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders said: “There has to be a balance between visibility and better protection of the car occupants.”

Meanwhile, the European Commission is proposing to require lorries to fit a mirror to cover a rear blind spot. This would help to reduce the growing number of sideswipe incidents on British motorways when left-hand drive foreign lorries pull out to the right to overtake.

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Paul Smith
Our scrap speed cameras petition got over 28,000 sigs
The Safe Speed campaign demands a return to intelligent road safety

The problem affects virtually all modern cars that I have been in. My Citroen C5 is terrible. This is very surprising because almost 30 years ago my Dad had a Citroen CX and I remember reading a Citroen brochure that talked about primary safety and secondary safety and explaining how good they thought the CX was.

Primary safety is things that stop you crashing in the first place like good visibilty, good brakes (the CX had powered disc brakes which were incredible compared to other cars of its era) and good steering. The CX steering was mentioned because it would maintain a course in the event of a blowout.

Secondary safety is things that protect you after a crash like a rigid body shell with crumple zones, seatbelts and airbags.

I believe that in the litigious society we now have manufacturers have forgotten about primary safety and only worry about being sued because the secondary safety was not good enough. I would far rather have good visibilty and avoid a crash than the horrible thick pillars I have now.