Video: Bike Butterfly, the pedestrian awareness aid

Trouble with free-range pedestrians? This new innovation could help...


Dave Atkinson, March 27, 2012

Bike-Butterfly

Having trouble with free-roaming pedestrians cutting you up on your daily commute? Slightly gullible? Well, help is at hand. Maybe. One frustrated London commuter got so tired with SMIDSY peds that he came up with a novel approach to the problem: the Bike Butterfly.

Basically, it's a set of spring loaded butterfly wings made from what looks like kite fabric. Stomp on the brakes and the wings unfold in the blink of an eye; that makes you more visible, gives the pedestrian something to remember (so maybe they'll look out for cyclists in the future) and also helps to slow you down. Three wins for the price of one.

It looks like the wings are flying out of the door (stop it - ed) as they appear to be sold out on the Bike Butterfly website. However, we're reliably informed that they're expecting more stock on Sunday... which seems an odd day for a delivery.

www.bikebutterfly.com

It's still March... I haven't woken up on April 1st?

jaunty angle: bikes and communications
http://ragtag.wordpress.com

ragtag's picture

posted by ragtag [109 posts] 27th March 2012 - 10:58

I'm sure this would go down well in close knit traffic on an A road...

Would also be fun on a club run!

If the bicycle was invented tomorrow, it would be seen as the solution, not the problem

posted by notfastenough [1929 posts] 27th March 2012 - 11:18

sunday april 1... an odd day for deliveries indeed.

posted by thehood [23 posts] 27th March 2012 - 12:09

Big Grin Nice Poisson d'avril

Sean

posted by seanieh66 [168 posts] 27th March 2012 - 13:09

Keep up Ragtag..... Wink

MercuryOne

MercuryOne's picture

posted by MercuryOne [715 posts] 27th March 2012 - 16:50

I'm holding on for the special edition carbon black pair with pink highlights.

posted by hirsthirst [12 posts] 28th March 2012 - 13:57

Towards the same end I tried the Equisafety jacket the other day and it does get results as one looks a little like a police officer. The advantage is that pedestrians and drivers eyes are so tuned to look out for police.
http://www.equisafety.com/polite/polite-notice-think-bike-reflective-wai...

posted by Pjrob [16 posts] 28th March 2012 - 22:44

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