Cars are changing. Technology is advancing. There are new automobile technologies being created and approved by governments all the time, and they just aren’t to sell cars. Some advancements are made with the effort to make the roads safer, and some are already being enforced.
Recently the EU approved a bill that will require all cars to have speed-limiting technology by 2022. But not everybody is on board, but supporters of this technology, which is essentially a cousin of automation, are fully behind it and are excited about the security it will allegedly bring to the roads. But still, what are the potential risks of this system? And what are the benefits?
Intelligent Speed Assistance (ISA)
The technology is called intelligent speed assistance (ISA) and it was approved by the European Commission. One of several measures expected to be fully approved by the European Parliament in September, officials are calling for all cars to have speed limiters by the year 2022.
ISA works with cameras that have traffic-sign recognition. It is designed to detect the appropriate speed by using GPS data. The cameras then adjust the speed according to traffic conditions. Tesla already has this technology in some of their cars already on the road.
These speed limiters will have warnings to reduce speed when the driver is breaking the law or simply going too fast for the current traffic conditions. Though alerts will pop up when the person is below the speed limit, the system does not apply the brakes. Instead, it will limit the power of the engine and prevent the vehicle from accelerating too much. All of this can be overridden, however, by pushing hard on the gas. This setting was built to give the driver the ability to avoid danger.
Risks of ISA technology
The European Transport Safety Council (ETSC) has acknowledged the risk of the technology by calling for on/off switches to be installed into every car along with the technology. When the car is turned on, the technology will activate but again you will be able to override it pressing on the accelerator harder in order to avoid danger. Some say that this is not enough, there is always the possibility that it may malfunction or be too hard for some people to push.
Some insurance companies are saying that ISA technology could cause accidents, according to MoneyPug, a site used to find the best car insurance rates. They warn that this technology needs to be fully and thoroughly tested before it is implemented into every European car. The inability to speed up easily is a large concern for many, saying that people need to have control in order to effectively get away from threats. The technology won’t be perfect at first and could lead to accidents.
Benefits of ISA technology
Supporters of ISA technology argue that the number of lives it will save will be far greater than any accidents that may occur as a result of the system. They say that the on/off switch will help, but this doesn’t mean that the driver will have it off when they need it to be.
The EU is estimating a reduction in traffic collisions by 30 percent. This includes up to 25,000 lives saved in the first 15 years of implementation. The European Commission has done research and found that speed limiters will make traffic calmer, reducing insurance costs overall. This is another reason the insurers may be opposed to the system. Furthermore, speed limiters are said to reduce CO2 emissions.
While there are both risks and benefits of the ISA system, it won’t be required for a few years. This may be enough time to work out the kinks but some people are skeptical. Even still, when the technology is mandated it will take a long time for the cars to become fully widespread, and it will take longer to see the results of it. There are certainly risks, but at this point, we can’t know for sure whether these risks will turn into reality. For now, we have to rely on what governmental bodies are telling us, and not many people like to rely on their judgment.
This is a collaborative article.
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