Do you agree the most effective way to stop the use of mobile phones while driving is to turn them off? Most people think so but very few actually do it. When in heavy traffic or stopped at traffic lights, drivers are even more likely to use their phones. It appears we still don’t grasp the real risks of using phones while driving. Read More
Have you become more attached to your car again? The mood today seems to have shifted back towards cars, away from public transport and rideshare. Although car use in Sydney dropped dramatically during lockdown, it has 90% recovered to normal. Is this a lasting trend or just a blip on the way to Peak Car? Read More
If you live in one of Australia’s major cities, you probably have trouble with parking. At Sydney Airport, you can pay the highest rates per hour in the world. Sydney and Brisbane parking, of all kinds, is the third and fifth most expensive in the world. Some of us don’t want to pay at all to park. But did you know parking rangers are least likely to work on Fridays? Read More
How many times have you pulled up at a service station to buy fuel? It’s just one of the many mundane tasks of a vehicle owner. Now electric vehicles are changing the way we think about “refuelling” entirely. We have to think about charging rather than fuelling, where to charge, and how much charge our vehicle really needs. Read More
Sydney is not an easy city for most cyclists. There are few bicycle paths and motorists often claim cyclists block the roads. However, research shows cyclists don’t slow motorists down and regular cyclists are more likely than car drivers to rate themselves as competent road users. Read More
We last visited the controversial topic of Sydney’s tolls in March 2019. There is some good news for campers who have been paying truck prices, and for drivers who spend over $25 a week on tolls. But thanks to WestConnex M5 East and M8, and to NorthConnex later this year, we are paying more tolls than ever. Read More
By March this year, nine people had already died in quad bike accidents. Quad bikes or ATVs (all-terrain vehicles) are often used on farms and not usually registered for sealed roads. But some say quad bikes are misnamed because they are not safe for sloping terrains. For this reason, more farmers are choosing side-by-side vehicles (SSVs). Read More
According to a US study, you are more likely to die driving a small car than a luxury SUV. This is alarming news for small car drivers, but it’s not the whole story. Many recent model small cars have lots of safety technologies and receive five-star ratings in crash tests. It all depends on how you measure safety. Read More
Back in October 2016, we wondered whether Australians care about car emissions. Nearly 4 years later, there are still mixed messages about cutting emissions. Australia still has no emissions standards. Meanwhile, ridesharing, SUVs and hybrids are increasing emissions faster than electric vehicles can lower them. Read More
Our 2-part series in February 2020, Are driverless cars just another fantasy?, exposed some of the autonomous vehicle (AVs) hype. Now the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) in the US reports AVs may prevent only one third of crashes. It is the first study to question the bold claim that driverless cars will have zero crashes. Read More