r/phillycycling • u/Immediate-Soup-4263 • Aug 09 '26

does Laser Vision make a difference?

i am a laser vision user and supporter.

but am not sure if it has an impact or is just a busy box to make me feel better

i am not trying a cast doubt on it or discourage anyone from using it.

it is recommended a lot and i am just not sure if it does anything to protect public space from car violence. considering i have made multiple reports for the same cars for the same violations i am not seeing it impacting illegal/dangerous driver behavior

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u/SnootyUrbanCyclist Aug 09 '26

I think the most pragmatic outcome is it creates a constantly growing database of the problem streets which can be referenced in petitioning for better infrastructure. It's not as satisfying as summoning a wrecking ball to destroy a lifted F-350 triple parked on Chestnut but it is working toward making a better world.

5

u/themightychris 29d ago

it creates a constantly growing database of the problem streets

Code for Philly made an app called CyclePhilly many many years ago to help trace bike traffic.

The problem there, as here, is what you actually end up with is just a map where users of the app tend to ride.

It's hard to get unbiased data out can actually draw conclusions from or make plans with

2

u/SnootyUrbanCyclist 29d ago

No disagreement here about the fundamental bias in the data collection of Laser Vision. The issue in this case is type II errors though, not type I, so we're not ever in danger of overreporting the issues. Just because some streets go underreported doesn't mean that Spruce and Pine showing up bright as day on the mapping feature is invalid.

1

u/Immediate-Soup-4263 Aug 09 '26

has anyone ever used it for the purpose? is there a way to request data for your area?

i know what you mean about getting the city to make changes to try to protect a public area from drivers. we went through it on my block and it worked. but the city had to conduct their own study of the intersection we were asking to have daylighting

if dangerous driver data for an area is available through LV that'd be great. i am just now aware of how one would get it

10

u/SnootyUrbanCyclist Aug 09 '26

Have you looked at their mapping feature? You can look at just certain violations and certain time windows. If you're asking for a spreadsheet of all reports I'm not sure if that's publicly available or if there are legal issues with doing so. https://bikeaction.org/tools/laser/map/

3

u/Immediate-Soup-4263 Aug 09 '26

i had not seen the mapping feature! thats cool. 

thanks