I almost ran someone over today in the parking lot.

I know the beeps can't be heard from the outside. The point I was trying to make was that the pedestrian didn't hear me yet those annoying beeps were blazing inside the car making me fully aware I was backing out.

 

Just to be clear, I wasn't trying to be humorous in my post yet some posters (for reasons I can't figure out) think I was trying to make light of the fact that a pedestrian didn't hear my car as I was backing out. It wasn't funny, if anything it makes me MORE cautious when backing out because people obviously don't hear the Prius. I never thought THIS was a post that needed defending.

 

This reminds me of a old poem on sailing (modified for pedestrians).

Here lies the body of John O'Day
Who died maintaining his right of way
He was right, dead right, as he walked alongg
But he's just as dead as if he'd been wrong.

 

I always leave my headlights on for safety on the road and it helps a little bit in parking lots and garages. In garages, where you're supposed to turn them on anyway, I go to high beams.

And yes, for anyone new to the Prius who happens upon this thread, you REALLY need to watch out when you back out of a space: the visibility isn't the best to begin with and the car may well be nearly silent -- even when cold -- for the first 8 seconds or so. Plenty of time to hit someone who's not facing the car to see the backup lights.

 

My husband nearly got hit in a parking lot last month. We were at the grocery store walking in. A car was coming so we moved out of the way closer to the parked cars. I guy got in his car that we were about to walk past and normally people get in, put stuff down, put on seatbelt, etc before backing out. But he did none of those, He got inthe car, started and began to back out. he didn't look for us, or the car that was passing by. Missed hubby by an inch. The other car honked at him and we yelled and he stopped. What a bonehead. Definitely look at your surroundings before backing out. I always wait for pedestrians to pass. They do have the right of way.

 

I was once at a stoplight in my Jeep. The light turned green and I started to go (straight, I wasn't turning right), just as a man pushed a baby stroller nearly into my passenger front quarterpanel. No one was injured, but my heart took quite a beating. I was far more upset than he was.

I try to pull through or back into parking spaces when I can to avoid having to back up into pedestrians and traffic with any vehicle. I'm also trying to figure out how to route the backup beeping to the outside of the car (like every other vehicle that has a reverse beep!!!) Seriously, what WERE they thinking?

Robbin

 

I think some pedestrians in parking lots expect you to stop so they continue to walk right in your path even when you're backing up. I think that isn't too smart on their part. When I'm walking in parking lots I always get out of the path of a car if I see the backup lights on. There is always a chance the person driving the car don't see you

 

these threads are dangerous. this is a public forum, these posts will be spread thru-out the internet and brings up an issue that has already caused a lot of problems.

most new cars in a busy parking lot WILL NOT BE HEARD. most people walking thru a parking lot are typically IN THEIR OWN WORLD.

your Prius is not the reason she was almost hit. "LaLa Land" caused it.

besides, as others have mentioned, the pedestrian always has the right of way.

 

Hi Prius newbies,

This is what horns are for. Please use them!

Another common technique is to roll the two front windows down and turn up the radio a little louder while in parking lots. People tend to be able to pick up melodies out of the din of outside noise levels. And it jogs them out of just ploding along.

 

Believe me it's because these idiots want to get hit so they can sue you.

 

You use the horn around here and you get the one finger salute in return.

 

Close calls in parking lots are not limited to the Prius. This is one of the reasons why I believe accident avoidance systems are the way to go. Unlike humans, either the pedestrian or driver, accident avoidance systems work all of the time.

As for the "Bell the Hybrid" advocates, near as I can tell they are deaf to any other point of view. Whether or not we discuss anything here or elsewhere, they will continue to pursue their goal in spite of the facts and data.

Bob Wilson

 

Get a thick skin LoraJ. Send somebody to the hospital with a broken leg just because you are embarresed to warn them, and you will get a lot more than a hand gesture insult. And there is no need to go full volume on the horn. A slight tap will make a noise audible outside the car, but many times not inside the car.

I have edited my post with another bit of Prius common sense that has been posted over the years that helps avoid having to use the horn.

 

I am always very wary in parking lots because people aren't paying attention, especially to cars backing out of spaces. Also, although the backup camera helps a lot when parallel parking or backing into a space, it is dangerous to rely on it too much when pulling out of a parking space. The camera only shows what's directly behind your car. People and vehicles might be to the side just out of view, especially if you're parked next to a larger vehicle, and can pop out of nowhere. I feel it's safer to turn around and look out of the rear-view window the old-fashioned way when backing out of a parking space in a busy lot.

But some of these stories ARE funny. I was on a driveway through some sort of a clubhouse and people were just standing around chatting. One guy was in the middle of the driveway. He didn't hear me approach so I just slowed down and waited. When he finally noticed me, he was quite startled, but laughed about it too.

Pedestrians do have some responsibility, too, and not just stand around with their backs to oncoming traffic or saunter along oblivious in the middle of the road. But drivers need to pay more attention. I'm appalled at people who drive around parking lots at the same speed as they drive on the main road. I am deaf in one ear so I can't always hear an approaching vehicle, no matter what type it is -- or even if I do hear I can't tell what direction it's coming from. I especially dislike walking on bike paths because I can't hear them approaching from behind, and even if they ring the bell I don't know on which side they're going to pass.

 

Just think, has there ever been a deaf individual killed over this recently?

 

Ok Guys,

I've got a high-tech solution for increasing awareness of vehicles for pedestrians - Cow Bells for Cars. We need a new law which states that any vehicle (baby carriages, bicycles, motorcycles, automobiles, trucks, buses, etc. ) sold in North America after Jan 1, 2010 must have a cow bell mounted front and center on the hood. The bell clapper would have a motion sensor that would clang the bell every 750 mSec. when the vehicle is in motion. By January 2011 all other vehicles must be retro-fitted.

Note, rural areas where dairy is a large industry would be exempt as it would be an insult to cows and only confuse them.

Keith

 

give ya great example of "parking lot awareness"... saw a young thing walking in parking lot at IKEA the other day. she was texting and walked smack dab into one of the concrete poles sticking out of the ground. since the fact that it was painted safety yellow didn t help, i guess it needs a beeper too

 

Get one of those gigantic subwoofers and crank the stereo up! Then not only can they hear you from miles away, they can also feel the vibrations.

 

I have noticed this more with the Prius than other cars. I don't blame the pedestrians at all, as a driver you just have to be more aware that sound is one of the cues people use to indicate presence of a vehicle. I think you gain that awareness very quickly though.

I have actually wished there was some way to trigger the ICE to start up on demand to make a little noise. I'd prefer not to use the horn. The idea of cranking the stereo and opening the windows is a good one though. I'll give that a try next time.