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everybody in London is breathing toxic levels of PM2.5 particles. And the fact that the largest sources of PM2.5 particles are tires and brake dust suggests that electrification is at best only a partial answer.
We also have to drive a whole lot less.
Fortunately, London appears to be pursuing an all-of-the-above strategy when it comes to greener transportation, including electric buses to a massive investment in cycle infrastructure, the goal really does appear to be easing gridlock and rethinking how we get from one place to another.
London's cycle superhighways have already shown they can deliver 70% increases in cycling, and now Mayor Sadiq Kahn has announced an entirely new, fourth superhighway bringing segregated lanes to Southeast London for the first time.
Instead of car tire and brake dust, Londoners will be able to inhale healthier bike tire and brake dust.
(Score: 2) by http on Friday October 06 2017, @05:19AM (7 children)
You're a clueless driver, and a jerk to boot. You're slamming on your brakes for speed bumps on a route you take regularly? No wonder your car got damaged. You won't convince anyone you weren't pulling that shit everywhere else you drove.
I browse at -1 when I have mod points. It's unsettling.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday October 06 2017, @06:17AM (6 children)
How else could I get the timing right and be sure that there weren't any hidden dangers?
With a previous commute elsewhere, I got good enough that I could drift a tiny bit.
I've gone 17 or 18 years without hitting anything. I might reject the yoke of the nanny state, but that doesn't make me clueless. Aside from speed, I actually follow rules far better than the typical driver. I've worn out turn signal lights, and not by leaving them on for miles.
BTW, I learned the suspension trick (slam brakes briefly) originally to deal with potholes.
(Score: 3, Interesting) by Pslytely Psycho on Friday October 06 2017, @08:50AM (4 children)
"I've gone 17 or 18 years without hitting anything. "
Luck does not equal skill.
If you truly drive like you say, it is only luck keeping you semi-safe.
(I was a professional truck driver trainer and amateur circle track and drag racer at my local tracks. Your driving stories sound like a 17 year old kid with his first set of wheels, no skills and a ton of bravado. I call bullshit.)
Alex Jones lawyer inspires new TV series: CSI Moron Division.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday October 06 2017, @10:07AM (3 children)
It's familiarity with the road, familiarity with the car, and paranoid alertness for anything out of the ordinary.
I only drive my commute like that. Elsewhere, the worst is much more mundane speeding. I'm not out there cutting off truck drivers or street racing.
It took a couple years before I understood the van well enough to go over 60 MPH (96 KPH) in it. (no, not on my commute) One has to have a good feel for how the suspension responds. I'd be there on a highway marked for 70 MPH or 75 MPH, and I'd be going 60 MPH or even a bit less. Several years later, I've briefly done 90 on really good interstate highways. That requires top quality pavement, intense concentration, a solid grip on the steering wheel, braced seating, and low wind.
The van can not usefully be drifted. Drifting is safe only on flat gravel surfaces with low speeds. It is kind of fun, but pointless.
I'm really tempted to get a WRX STI or Golf Type R. I probably ought to spend the money on my kid's education though.
(Score: 1, Touché) by Anonymous Coward on Friday October 06 2017, @12:54PM
Get the WRX and some life insurance. The kid will be fine.
(Score: 2) by Pslytely Psycho on Saturday October 07 2017, @04:47AM (1 child)
"It's familiarity with the road, familiarity with the car, and paranoid alertness for anything out of the ordinary."
You're fooling only yourself. No responsible driver ever drives like that. Too much macho, not enough sense. It WILL catch up to you.
"Elsewhere, the worst is much more mundane speeding. I'm not out there cutting off truck drivers or street racing."
This is the first thing you've said that makes sense.
"Drifting is safe only on flat gravel surfaces with low speeds. It is kind of fun, but pointless."
Drifting is safe (for other people) ONLY at the track, and even there sometimes bad shit happens. A drift can easily get out of hand, even at low speeds. It's NEVER safe in an uncontrolled environment.
Personally I love high speed asphalt drifting, never got the hang of it myself, but my nephew Josh kicks ass at it, and spends and ungodly amount for tires over a season...
Alex Jones lawyer inspires new TV series: CSI Moron Division.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday October 10 2017, @08:59AM
It's weird that people see my behavior as some sort of macho thing. I'm much more of a calm, calculating, paranoid sort. I just like to go fast.
Drifting a van is NOT safe at the track. The tires would grip a solid surface too well, causing a roll-over. To drift a van without rolling it, you need something like a loose gravel surface. Snow, ice, water, and oil might also allow drifting without rolling the van.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday October 06 2017, @04:37PM
How else do you get the timing right? Uhh you go slow over the speed bumps. I hope you break your van too.