Safety That Looks Out for Everyone

What is the relationship between mobile phones and pedestrian casualties?

Careless drivers, distracted pedestrians and a road infrastructure that doesn’t protect them from motorists all play their part in pedestrian injuries and fatalities. But it’s difficult to ignore the emergence of a new layer of danger - pedestrians glued to their mobile phone screens. It’s a worldwide phenomenon but in Asia, it’s known as the “heads-down tribe”.

The danger of distraction

Viral videos of people walking into fountains while looking at their phone screen have provided plenty of amusement, but distracted pedestrians risk much more than falling into a water feature. Distracted walking is well recognized around the world as a safety threat, and pedestrians need to be aware of the risks.

Here’s a fact of life though — people will continue to use their mobile phones while walking, even if they know it’s unsafe. In China, where the World Health Organization (WHO) estimates 68,000 pedestrians are killed a year, the ‘heads-down tribe’ is being managed with segregated footpaths for pedestrians who insist on using their phones on the go.

See and be seen

Being focused and alert, as both a pedestrian and a driver, is one of the greatest steps people can take towards keeping themselves safe. Studies suggest that just by making eye contact with drivers, pedestrians can improve their odds of not being involved in an accident. A 2020 report by researchers at the Beijing Institute of Technology explored the power of eye contact, and revealed that when pedestrians connected with drivers before attempting to cross a road, the drivers reduced their speed.

Whether on a highway, or at a pedestrian crossing, speed kills. According to the World Health Organization, pedestrians struck by a car going 30 km/h or slower have a 90% survival rate, while those struck by a car going 45 km/h have less than a 50% likelihood of survival. And if you get hit by a car going 80 km/h there’s almost no chance you’ll live.

One way to improve the odds of survival is to slow the impact speed of any collision as much as possible. That’s not easy to do, especially if a driver doesn’t see what they’re about to hit. So what if your car could see for you, then react instantaneously on your behalf?

Subaru’s renowned EyeSight Pre-Collision Braking makes it possible for your car to do just that. The system can detect pedestrians (and other obstacles) in a car’s path when the car is traveling at 1 km/h or faster, all the way to 200 km/h. This capability, unique to Subaru’s EyeSight system, covers most collision scenarios in urban areas with pedestrian crossings and on highways.

By “seeing” what’s ahead of you, Subaru’s EyeSight can determine how fast you’re approaching what’s in front of you. In an emergency situation where the brakes haven’t been applied quickly enough, the Pre-Collision Braking feature will automatically apply the brakes to bring the car to a full stop or at least slow it down to minimize damage or injury.

Of course, no one can have eyes in the back of their head. But your car can. A report by Monash University’s Accident Research Centre found that cars with reversing cameras were 30% less likely to be associated with fatal and serious injury crashes involving pedestrians compared to cars without this technology.

Subaru’s Reverse Automatic Braking (RAB) feature uses four sensors on the car’s rear bumper to detect an obstacle, vehicle or wall behind the car when reversing. If it detects something, it will initially sound a warning. And If the driver doesn’t react quickly enough, the system will automatically apply the brakes to avoid a rearward crash.

Studies suggest that just by making eye contact with drivers, pedestrians can improve their safety.

Designing cars to protect pedestrians

If the worst happens and a pedestrian is hit by a car, there are more safety measures in place to help reduce injury. For instance, the degree to which the car is able to absorb the impact. In most accidents involving a pedestrian the front bumper of the car will strike the legs of the pedestrian first. A Subaru’s front bumper is designed to absorb collision energy, while the car’s Boxer engine is positioned below the hood in a way that allows the hood to absorb some of the shock if a pedestrian is thrown onto the vehicle.

Making the safest cars on the road means thinking about safety from every angle. By putting your safety first, Subaru somehow manages to look out for the safety of everybody else.