- SMIDSY
The
acronym SMIDSY, short for "sorry mate, I didn't see you", is used by British and Australian motorcyclists and cyclists to describe collisions in which a car driver fails to perceive a two-wheel user (seemotorcycle safety ). It is estimated by the UK Department of Transport that SMIDSY incidents account for around 25% of all motorcycle accidents. [cite web | url= http://www.southglos.gov.uk/NR/exeres/79f76ebc-79bd-4878-a782-bcf34648bcc1 | title= How many accidents and where | work= South Gloucestershire Council SMIDSY campaign | accessdate= 2007-09-01 ]There is good evidence that drivers may in fact see at the subconscious level, but that this is not translated to the conscious as the brain does not perceive the other as a threat, so a driver may be able to see a cyclist, but not transfer this information into an action of adjusting their
automobile . Another theory is that drivers simply don't expect to see a two wheeled vehicle, so they are missed even when wearing high conspicuity clothing or using lights. [cite web | url= http://www.southglos.gov.uk/NR/exeres/e0b4f56b-d365-418c-9554-55caa83240e8 | title= Why don't people see motorcyclists | work= South Gloucestershire Council SMIDSY campaign | accessdate= 2007-09-01 ]These collisions may be recorded as "failure to see", or as simply "right-of-way violations".
"SMIDSY" was the title of a
BBC TV series onroad safety broadcast in the 1980s. S.M.I.D.S.Y. was also the name of arobot design which competed in the Series 3-7 of "Robot Wars".Fact|date=August 2008References
External links
* [http://www.smidsy.co.uk UK campaign website setup by South Gloucestershire Council]
* [http://www.smidsy.org.uk UK website setup to promote the SMIDSY message to motorists]
* [http://youtube.com/watch?v=i4Gqmfa7qog Devon County Council humorous SMIDSY video]
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