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automobile use, which may include those of:
maintaining roads, land use, pollution, public health,
health care, and of disposing of the vehicle at the end of
its life, can be balanced against the value of the benefits
to society that automobile use generates. The societal
benefits may include: economy benefits, such as job and
wealth creation, of automobile production and maintenance,
transportation provision, society wellbeing derived from
leisure and travel opportunities, and revenue generation
from the tax opportunities. The ability for humans to move
flexibly from place to place has far reaching implications
for the nature of societies.
Systematic research
on crash safety started in at Ford Motor Company.
Since then, most research has focused on absorbing external
crash energy with crushable panels and reducing the motion
of human bodies in the passenger compartment. This is
reflected in most cars produced today.Significant reductions
in death and injury have come from the addition of Safety
belts and laws in many countries to require vehicle
occupants to wear them. Airbags and specialised child
restraint systems have improved on that. Structural changes
such as side-impact protection bars in the doors and side
panels of the car mitigate the effect of impacts to the side
of the vehicle. Many cars now include radar or sonar
detectors mounted to the rear of the car to warn the driver
if he or she is about to reverse into an obstacle or a
pedestrian. Some vehicle manufacturers are producing cars
with devices that also measure the proximity to obstacles
and other vehicles in front of the car and are using these
to apply the brakes when a collision is inevitable.
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