Electric, hybrid cars run quiet: That's bad for blind people [View All]

By STEVE EVERLY
The Kansas City Star
9-26-09

The auto industry for decades worked to make cars as quiet as possible. With electric cars the near ultimate has been achieved — virtually no noise at all.

But we may have a problem. To be more specific, pedestrians may have a problem. And if you're a blind pedestrian used to hearing cars coming, there may really be a problem.

"I think we're going to have people die," said Gary Wunder, president of the National Federation of the Blind of Missouri. "Anything that can outweigh a pedestrian by two tons needs to make a sound."

Last summer, a blind woman in Kansas City, Kan., had a very close call. She wasn't hit, but her white cane was run over and broken, she suspects by a hybrid vehicle.

More: http://www.kansascity.com/105/story/1471590.html