Solve one problem, create another
About those A-pillars you keep reading about...
The intended function of an A-pillar is structural integrity. It keeps the roof and windshield where they belong in the event of a crash. SUVs and pick-up trucks (America's favorite vehicles) have been constructed with super wide A-pillars in recent years to protect occupants during a rollover. The vehicles roll over, of course, because people drive fast and aggressively.
But everything has trade-offs. While the SUVs and trucks now do better in rollover crashes, the A-pillars create significant blind spots for the driver. Some of these pillars are 3 times as wide as they were just 10 to 20 years ago.
When a driver turns left at an intersection or into a parking lot, the A-pillar can obstruct the view of pedestrians, cyclists, or other vehicles. Probably the most dangerous scenario is when a driver is turning left while someone is properly using a crosswalk. The driver is focused on beating oncoming traffic and cuts the left-turn at an angle. According to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS), SUVs, pickups, vans, and minivans are far more likely than passenger cars to hit pedestrians when making turns.
Drivers have to compensate by taking extra caution like moving their head and slowing down. But decades of crash reports reveal that drivers don't like moving their head or slowing down. A couple years ago, GM was granted a patent for a see-through A-pillar because of the blind spot issue.
People walking or sitting on a bicycle realize it's a struggle to exercise caution while operating powerful motor vehicles. The see-through pillars haven’t arrived yet, so please be careful out there.
Left turns are a major cause of vehicle-pedestrian crashes, and the roof pillars are a major reason. NYC has instituted an infrastructure improvement to help address this problem. They have hardened centerlines that slow vehicles during turns and also force a more 90 degree (right angle) turn as vehicles attempt to make a left across a crosswalk. The slower and more 90 degree turn helps alleviate the blindspot created by the vehicle roof pillars, which are the biggest issue when the left turn is at <90 degrees. NYC found that pedestrian crashes at crosswalks decrease by 20% and vehicle turning speeds decreased by almost 60% when hardened centerlines are implemented.
Link to Maryland.gov hardened centerlines info website: https://experience.arcgis.com/experience/769bd85416ff4e46bf3cb78a67ed4640/page/Hardened-Centerlines/
I drive a Golf and the A pillar is a huge visual problem, I have often missed pedestrians or cars behind it. There’s one traffic circle I use that angles my car so the obstruction directly obscures oncoming traffic.
I long for the day when I don’t have to drive at all. I hate it.