People who drive a Prius (or other hybrid car) can be a bit boring at times. But despite their obsession with the mileage they’re getting, sometime THEY get a little bored too, with their polite, docile QUIET cars. Some people have suggested adding an artificial sport car sound to them. Now hybrid owners have a new excuse to do this: complaints that these silent cars are sneaking up on pedestrians (especially blind ones) because they don’t give them enough warning to get out of the way.
BBC News quotes Toyota spokesman Paul Nolasco as saying, “If it becomes a social concern, it is something we will have to address.” We have a suggestion: let people CHOOSE the hybrid noise they want and download it, the way they do cell phone ring tones. Regular engine noise is so boring, and the clash of music and sounds (such as birdsong?) would bring a new level of excitement to our streets. Don’t laugh: anything can happen!
Art credit: Dreamstime.com
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