27/04/2012
A sat-nav for the elderly
“Turn left in 300 yards,” my sat-nav tells me.
Three hundred yards! I don’t know how far that is! I was never very good in maths classes, and now I’m expected to work out how quickly I will reach this 300 yard point while travelling at 40mph in an area I’m unfamiliar with?
It’s not happening.
Thankfully, researchers at Newcastle University are developing a new sat-nav which could help me and many others out no end.
Meant for elderly drivers, this sat-nav will tell the motorist to turn at a certain landmark, like a church or a restaurant, instead of flinging distances at them.
Furthermore, for those motorists who have become worried by other traffic in their old age, the gadget will apparently even work out a route which has no right turns across traffic.
Professor Phil Blythe, the lead researcher, states, “What we are doing is to look at ways of keeping people driving safely for longer, which in turn boosts independence and keeps us socially connected.
“There are a range of solutions that could help and the navigation system is one of the more obvious solutions.
“It would be much simpler than a sat-nav and will try to provide information in ways the older generation can absorb and process.
“It identifies the safest route – such as avoiding right turns and dual carriageways – and uses pictures as turning cues, such as a postbox or public house.”
I’m loving the sound of this GPS system. I have a feeling it won’t be just elderly drivers choosing this new gadget over the less helpful sat-navs.
Three hundred yards! I don’t know how far that is! I was never very good in maths classes, and now I’m expected to work out how quickly I will reach this 300 yard point while travelling at 40mph in an area I’m unfamiliar with?
It’s not happening. Thankfully, researchers at Newcastle University are developing a new sat-nav which could help me and many others out no end.
Meant for elderly drivers, this sat-nav will tell the motorist to turn at a certain landmark, like a church or a restaurant, instead of flinging distances at them.
Furthermore, for those motorists who have become worried by other traffic in their old age, the gadget will apparently even work out a route which has no right turns across traffic.
Professor Phil Blythe, the lead researcher, states, “What we are doing is to look at ways of keeping people driving safely for longer, which in turn boosts independence and keeps us socially connected.
“There are a range of solutions that could help and the navigation system is one of the more obvious solutions.
“It would be much simpler than a sat-nav and will try to provide information in ways the older generation can absorb and process.
“It identifies the safest route – such as avoiding right turns and dual carriageways – and uses pictures as turning cues, such as a postbox or public house.”
I’m loving the sound of this GPS system. I have a feeling it won’t be just elderly drivers choosing this new gadget over the less helpful sat-navs.
Photo © me’nthedogs via Flickr, under Creative Commons Licence
Labels: elderly driver, GPS, motorist, Newcastle University, sat-nav, traffic, travelling
14/10/2011
Does every minute really count that much?
We all like it when journey times are shorter than we expected, unless we happen to be travelling in a limo complete with jacuzzi, massage therapist, with five-star food available on demand, which doesn’t happen every often.
However, if we’re not in that limo and it’s a matter of being one minute earlier than we would have been, we’re not that energised by the amount of time we’ve saved.
Nevertheless, the Department for Transport seems very pleased that by removing the bus lane from the M4 from Heathrow to London, it has cut the journey time between the two destinations by a whole minute.
That’s 20 seconds more than they had thought previously.
Excited?
Well we found it difficult to throw a party in celebration of it too – but as the head of road safety at the AA highlighted, “At least people queuing to get onto the elevated section don’t have to endure the frustration of seeing an empty lane alongside them.”
We suppose that is a plus, it’s annoying seeing an empty lane and knowing that you can’t use it.
But wait! The lane will be reinstated in 2012 so that the ‘Olympic Family’ can use it to get to their events in good time – so other road users will have that achingly long minute put back onto their journey time soon anyway.
However, if we’re not in that limo and it’s a matter of being one minute earlier than we would have been, we’re not that energised by the amount of time we’ve saved. Nevertheless, the Department for Transport seems very pleased that by removing the bus lane from the M4 from Heathrow to London, it has cut the journey time between the two destinations by a whole minute.
That’s 20 seconds more than they had thought previously.
Excited?
Well we found it difficult to throw a party in celebration of it too – but as the head of road safety at the AA highlighted, “At least people queuing to get onto the elevated section don’t have to endure the frustration of seeing an empty lane alongside them.”
We suppose that is a plus, it’s annoying seeing an empty lane and knowing that you can’t use it.
But wait! The lane will be reinstated in 2012 so that the ‘Olympic Family’ can use it to get to their events in good time – so other road users will have that achingly long minute put back onto their journey time soon anyway.
Photo © nikoretro via Flickr, under Creative Commons Licence
Labels: AA, bus lane, Department for Transport, destination, journey time, limo, M4, Olympic Family, travelling
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