Experts In The News
Flashing crosswalk lights are no match for flashy cars, according to a new UNLV study which found that drivers of expensive cars are least likely to stop for crossing pedestrians.
Drivers on a whole aren't all that great at stopping for pedestrians waiting at crosswalks: Of 461 cars that researchers examined, only 28 percent yielded. But the cost of the car was a significant predictor of driver yielding, with the odds that they'll stop decreasing by 3 percent per $1,000 increase in the car's value. Researchers estimated the cost of each car using pricing categories from Kelley Blue Book.
Drivers of expensive cars are less likely to stop for pedestrians in crosswalks than people driving lower-priced cars, according to a study published in the March issue of the Journal of Transport & Health.
The science is looking pretty unanimous on this one: Drivers of expensive cars are the worst.
Researchers have tracked hundreds of cars at pedestrian crossings in the United States, where the law forces drivers to stop. Thus, they found that the likelihood of those driving cheaper cars to stop to allow pedestrians to cross is higher than for expensive cars. On average, the value of cars that stop at pedestrian crossings is $ 5,900, while the average value of those who have not stopped rises to $ 8,000.
American researchers have tracked a large number of pedestrian crossings in the US, where legislation requires drivers to stop for people who want to cross the crossing. They found that drivers of cheaper cars are more likely to obey this law compared to those who sit in more expensive cars.
The more expensive a car is, the less likely the driver will stop for one or more pedestrians crossing the street.
A study at the University of Nevada found that the more expensive a car is, the less likely it is to stop to give way to a pedestrian stepping into a pedestrian crossing.