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I’m in Portugal with kids right now and I can not think of a country where dashcams would be more useful. The standard of driving and adherence to the law of t

by danw1979 1mo ago

I’m in Portugal with kids right now and I can not think of a country where dashcams would be more useful. The standard of driving and adherence to the law of the roads is some of the worst I’ve encountered in Europe. I haven’t let go of my 9yo’s hand since we arrived in Porto a few days ago. Speeding is chronic and nobody gives a shit for the safety of you or your children here.

wickedsickeune 1mo ago
In Greece and Italy they drive at least as bad as in Portugal, if not much worse, and dashcams are perfectly legal.
- iamnothere 1mo ago
  I’d also suggest searching for the classic “Russian dashcam videos” on YouTube.
  - danw1979 1mo ago
    I always thought Russian motorists were early adopters of dashcams to combat insurance “issues” around the terrible standard of roads and driving there ? My point still stands: dashcams are useful in a country with terrible driving, if the only effect is to eliminate doubt around whose fault an accident was.
dandaka 1mo ago
Recording everything has a lot of upsides. Unfortunately, downsides for privacy and democracy are very real. Talking about speeding, not sure. I am driving around Lisbon and speed limit is 50 in city, and lots of speed cameras. Though I am driving at 55 as limit and rarely see anyone going faster than that.
constantius 1mo ago
You are in a new country and feel that your kid needs protection, which is perfectly human, but does mean that your opinion is a bit biased. As sibling comments mention, countries exist with many cameras, public or private, where driving feels worse. I didn't look at road deaths, but I'd be surprised if Portugal is among the leading countries on this. Equally, if you take a bit of distance, you can realise that Portugal has many other parents living there, yet they are not clamouring for more surveillance: it's difficult to imagine that the Portuguese dictatorial government is evilly preventing its people from accessing the benefits of surveillance.
- snozolli 1mo ago
  2024 stats, road accident fatalities, per million inhabitants: Portugal: 58 Romania (highest in EU): 78 EU overall: 44 Sweden (lowest in EU): 20 https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/statistics-explained/index.php?%20title=Road_safety_statistics_in_the_EU https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/statistics-explained/index.php... So, depending on where OP is from, Portugal could seem a bit more dangerous or wildly more dangerous than their home county.
AnyTimeTraveler 1mo ago
Take the train instead. It's much better here in europe.
- danw1979 1mo ago
  I was on foot, in Porto, in the tourist parts of town.
meh2frdf 1mo ago
The driving in Portugal is notoriously bad, yeah maybe not such a concern in your tourist experience in Lisbon center, because you can't really go fast. Get out on the motorways and country roads and your opinion will soon change.

wickedsickeune 1mo ago

In Greece and Italy they drive at least as bad as in Portugal, if not much worse, and dashcams are perfectly legal.

iamnothere 1mo ago
I’d also suggest searching for the classic “Russian dashcam videos” on YouTube.
- danw1979 1mo ago
  I always thought Russian motorists were early adopters of dashcams to combat insurance “issues” around the terrible standard of roads and driving there ? My point still stands: dashcams are useful in a country with terrible driving, if the only effect is to eliminate doubt around whose fault an accident was.

dandaka 1mo ago

Recording everything has a lot of upsides. Unfortunately, downsides for privacy and democracy are very real. Talking about speeding, not sure. I am driving around Lisbon and speed limit is 50 in city, and lots of speed cameras. Though I am driving at 55 as limit and rarely see anyone going faster than that.

constantius 1mo ago

You are in a new country and feel that your kid needs protection, which is perfectly human, but does mean that your opinion is a bit biased. As sibling comments mention, countries exist with many cameras, public or private, where driving feels worse. I didn't look at road deaths, but I'd be surprised if Portugal is among the leading countries on this. Equally, if you take a bit of distance, you can realise that Portugal has many other parents living there, yet they are not clamouring for more surveillance: it's difficult to imagine that the Portuguese dictatorial government is evilly preventing its people from accessing the benefits of surveillance.

snozolli 1mo ago
2024 stats, road accident fatalities, per million inhabitants: Portugal: 58 Romania (highest in EU): 78 EU overall: 44 Sweden (lowest in EU): 20 https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/statistics-explained/index.php?%20title=Road_safety_statistics_in_the_EU https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/statistics-explained/index.php... So, depending on where OP is from, Portugal could seem a bit more dangerous or wildly more dangerous than their home county.

AnyTimeTraveler 1mo ago

Take the train instead. It's much better here in europe.

danw1979 1mo ago
I was on foot, in Porto, in the tourist parts of town.

meh2frdf 1mo ago

The driving in Portugal is notoriously bad, yeah maybe not such a concern in your tourist experience in Lisbon center, because you can't really go fast. Get out on the motorways and country roads and your opinion will soon change.