On public roads, some people are more vulnerable than others. Pedestrians, cyclists and motorcyclists bear the brunt of the matterbeyond the fact that in recent years security technologies have become increasingly sophisticated.
But there is some pure and hard physics who does not understand automatic braking system or sophisticated technologies, and is that if something big, tall and forceful hits you, the result for whoever gets hit is not good. This is happening with SUVs, the impractical fashion silhouette which is claiming more victims than normal vehicles.
According to a new study carried out by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS), fatal cyclist accidents increased by 8% during the first nine months of 2022 in that country and according to the agency, this is due to the greater number of SUVs in circulation.
According to Sam Monfort, an IIHS researcher and lead author of the study, “SUVs tend to knock cyclists off their bikes more. In the event of an accident with a smaller and lower vehicle, the cyclist tends to fall on top of the hood, whereas if the impact is with an SUV, it is more likely to end with the vehicle running over or directly hitting vital parts of the vehicle. body. That’s probably because the taller front end of an SUV hits the rider above their center of gravity, knocking them to the ground where the wheels or the ground cause more serious injuries.”
The foundations of this study are obtained after adetailed analysis of 71 bicycle accidents in Michigan, USA. It found that lower extremity injuries were common in all 71 crashes, regardless of whether the vehicle was a car or an SUV, but that cyclists involved in serious crashes also suffered head injuries , torso, spine and abdomen. The study found that total body trauma was 55% higher in crashes involving SUVs than those involving smaller cars.
This information builds on another IIHS study from early 2020 that found that SUVs and their taller front ends are also more dangerous to pedestrians than other cars. In the case of pedestrians, they tend to suffer more injuries to the pelvis and chest where the SUV directly impacts them.
