Ford Uses VR to Show Bad Drivers How They Hurt Bad Cyclists

But it doesn’t mean the world can’t try. Social media has shown over the years how cats and dogs can, after all, can get along. Trump and Jong-Un should have played together next month as well. Even if it’s now certain they won’t, it doesn’t mean they can’t, at another date. Is there then any hope for drivers and cyclists, then?

Ford believes so, at least in the UK. Because in that country everybody is in the same boat, driving or riding on the wrong side of the road, Ford is sure it can bridge the gap between the two categories.

For that, they would use virtual reality as part of an awareness campaign called Share The Road. Titled WheelSwap, the VR experience will enable “motorists and cyclists to see how inconsiderate driving and riding can be for their fellow road users.”

Simply put, drivers will get to see from a cyclist’s point of view how scary it can be when cars overtake too closely, swerve without indicating or open doors without checking for bikes.

For their part, cyclists will get to experience the thrills drivers get when bycicles jump red lights, cycle down one-way streets the wrong way and swerve unexpectedly.

The VR experience will become part of the carmaker’s Ford Driving Skills for Life program, created for 17 to 24-year-old drivers.

“There is no more effective means of appreciating someone else’s point of view than stepping into their shoes, or in this case, on to their pedals. Empathy is an immensely powerful emotion,” said behavioral scientist Dan Berry, one of the creators of the VR scenarios.

According to Ford, 60 percent of those who have already taken a bite of VR experience have changed their on-road habits within two weeks. Ford does not mention how many people that 60 percent represents.