OBSERVATION: Hong Kong is arguably one of the loudest cities in the world; the situation is exacerbated by the liberal use of automobile horns within high density urban areas.
SOLUTION: Provide new automobile warning systems and better enforce existing Hong Kong laws restricting the use of the horn for emergency situations only.
Hong Kong can be a deafening city — and how many times have pedestrians and surrounding residential units been assaulted by a long queue of cars all leaning on their horns in frustration of slow-moving traffic?
The ubiquitous automobile horn has its origins almost 200 years ago in the earliest of “horseless carriages” as an audible warning device. However, today this vestige from the past is misused by millions of drivers expressing their frustration with drivers within close proximity — often due to traveling too slow, blocking traffic, turning illegally, or changing lanes unexpectedly.
In the worst case scenarios, situations of road rage ensue with angry drivers racing to catch up with an offending vehicle for a “showdown” which results in potentially very dangerous situations.
While the current audible horn must still be maintained for emergency situations and to warn of imminent collisions — in a high density city like Hong Kong, could a new type of “silent” wireless horn be designed into new automobiles that would spare nearby pedestrians and residents from unnecessary noise pollution?
What if steering wheels in new cars were equipped with a sensor that could detect the pounding of a frustrated driver’s fist on the top of the steering wheel that could send a wireless “dissatisfaction” or warning signal to all vehicles within a certain radius through their surround sound stereo system, indicating the relative direction of the signal? This driver-specific signal could be accompanied by a visual warning indicator for those oblivious drivers plugged into their personal headphones or enamored with their dashboard-mounted smartphones.
Taking things one step further, could a direct wireless audio link be provided between two vehicles for temporary communication? This could be provided via a touchscreen at the dashboard indicating the relative positions of surrounding vehicles. If the recipient agrees to accept the call, then the two drivers could have a short hands-free chat to resolve any potential misunderstandings, warn of the dangers of a damaged part dangling off a nearby vehicle … or perhaps even strike up a conversation with an attractive person of the opposite sex! The receiving driver can always opt to block the call.
If such a system was able to be implemented, could the use of the traditional car horn be restricted by law to emergency situations only in an effort to reduce overall noise pollution levels?