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Reversed Seats in Transport

Reversed passenger seats everywhere: in cars, airplanes, busses, trains, etc.
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It would greatly reduce the rate of injuries in accidents.
Inyuki, Feb 02 2011

see interior features http://www.minnpost...starInterior452.jpg
[xandram, Feb 02 2011]

I would like this! http://farm2.static...5540_1534058c05.jpg
[xandram, Feb 02 2011]

there has always been this... http://images.trave...in-the-rail-car.jpg
[xandram, Feb 02 2011]

De Dion Bouton vis-a-vis http://en.wikipedia...outon_Vis-a-Vis.jpg
1899 [pocmloc, Feb 02 2011]

[link]






       Baked. RAF passenger aeroplanes have rear-facing seats.
hippo, Feb 02 2011
  

       Step in the right direction. Probably it could be done even to old airplanes and other means of transport. Reversing seats is relatively simple action, which could save many lives.
Inyuki, Feb 02 2011
  

       //Step in the right direction//
But face the wrong one.
coprocephalous, Feb 02 2011
  

       Not sure how well this would work in a car. At least for the driver.. Meanwhile my passengers can stare down teh driver behind me. Creepy.
AutoMcDonough, Feb 02 2011
  

       This seems intuitively obvious, Inyuki, but is there any scientific evidence to back it up?
DrBob, Feb 02 2011
  

       I think Network Southeast trains are hedging their bets, with seats facing front, back and sideways.
coprocephalous, Feb 02 2011
  

       I think I've seen studies that argue otherwise, although I'm not certain. It definitely wouldn't help with rear end-collisions, and would probably result in a higher level of motion sickness.
MechE, Feb 02 2011
  

       // At least for the driver //   

       There's no reason why a car can't be driven with a driver facing rearward, and forward-facing cameras. In fact, it has huge advantages. No need for a windscreen, or wipers. No need for airbags. Much safer in the event of rapid deceleration. Allows integration of all sorts of driving aids, like navigation systems, low light and poor weather enhancement via LIDAR.   

       And you also save on a rear-view mirror ...   

       Mind you, if the electronics fail ...
8th of 7, Feb 02 2011
  

       // This seems intuitively obvious // Just like having and not having a shield.   

       // Is there any scientific evidence to back it up? // Research of shields.   

       A strong outer layer to protect from impactor penetration for front-most seats, and soft inner layer to absorb impact energy.
Inyuki, Feb 02 2011
  

       When we were kids, we sat backwards in the back of my Dad's station-wagon and made funny faces at the people in the car behind us...
That was before seatbelt laws and a dozen people could ride just sitting in the back of a pick-up truck, too!
xandram, Feb 02 2011
  

       I forgot to say that a lot of trains and planes already have this, so it is baked mostly.
xandram, Feb 02 2011
  

       When I was in Japan, the shinkansen (pretty sure it was a series 0, south line, Hikari) had seats facing forward on the left side, reverse on the right. Of course, they didn't turn the trains around at the end - both ends are the front - so on the return trip, forward on left, reverse on right.   

       I've read that the newer series have rotating seats - when they reach the end of the line, all the seats get turned around to face the new "front". (People seemed to prefer the side with the forward facing seats - to the point that it affected the balance of the train.)
lurch, Feb 02 2011
  

       Yes, psychology is the downfall of this idea.
pocmloc, Feb 02 2011
  

       [marked-for-tagline]   

       " Yes, psychology is the downfall of this idea "
normzone, Feb 02 2011
  

       Driving while facing backwards would mean that the body's perception of acceleration would conflict with what is seen. Still, they said <who said?> it would be impossible to fly an aeroplane with a closed cockpit for similar reasons.
spidermother, Feb 03 2011
  

       // // This seems intuitively obvious // Just like having and not having a shield. //

Ah, but that's my point. A seat on a bus is not designed to be a shield (or even a seat I suspect; in fact I'm not entirely sure what they are designesd for) and, even if you assume that it had shield-like properties, that would only help if the impact was in one particular direction. Hence my original question.
DrBob, Feb 03 2011
  

       You could just drive your car in reverse
hippo, Feb 03 2011
  

       "There's no reason why a car can't be driven with a driver facing rearward"   

       Except that everything would feel wrong. As the driver turns right, he feels acceleration as if turning left, as he slows down, he feels acceleration pushing him back into his seat.   

       Recipe for disaster.
Twizz, Feb 03 2011
  

       ...recipes aren't allowed here!!
xandram, Feb 03 2011
  

       [bigsleep], that made me laugh out loud, but driver is not a passenger, and this idea does not propose drivers to have reversed seats.
Inyuki, Feb 04 2011
  

       //as he accelerates, he feels acceleration push him onto the accelerator pedal.//   

       I remember a funny incident way back when I was learning to use my quad (atv) - I went to ride up a steep incline, and failed to get to the top. When I put the bike in reverse to ride back down (never turn around on a slope) - the reverse acceleration pinned my right leg against the throttle lever, pinging me flat out down the slope and across the flat before I could let go. My left leg was pinned against the horn button, so here I am, flying backwards with the engine peaking and the horn blaring and a wild look on my face, bouncing all over the place. My mates thought it was pretty funny, so did I some time later.   

       Anyhoo, as to the idea, I'll stand on a bus or train as opposed to facing backwards, because I get motion sickness, the only cure for which is being able to see where you're going. I'm sure I'm not the only person inflicted with it. Unless you want a new technicolour interior colour scheme from time to time, I'd not force people to face backwards.
Custardguts, Feb 06 2011
  

       I prefer to sit facing rearwards on the bus or the train, partly because I suspect that the probablility of the vehicle sustaining a sharp deceleration is higher than it receiving a high accelerating impact, but mostly because I think it makes it easier to look at things out of the window, since their angular velocity reduces as they pass from being alongside me to being behind me.   

       I get motion sickness in cars anyway, unless I'm driving.
VaquitaTim, Feb 07 2011
  

       //It would greatly reduce the rate of injuries in accidents.//   

       Except for all those projectiles now hitting you in the face.
ldischler, Feb 07 2011
  

       I don't quite get it for high speed transport, but New Orleans street cars have reversible seating and they hit cars all the time. Maybe I should have considered my seat choice more carefully the years I was there.
Zimmy, Feb 14 2011
  
      
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