Multiple news reports have indicated that the US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has announced that it may pursue a new set of rules involving car-to-car technologies.
The new rule would require that all new cars are fitted with the car-to-car communication technology known as V2V. The system would be mandatory if the NHTSA has its way, keeping the driver from being able to have it removed. According to the news reports, consumers would be able to at least turn the notifications off if they desire.
According to the news sources covering this story, the federal agency has proposed this new rule so that vehicles are able to communicate important information to nearby cars. This could help drivers make better decisions about their routes, boosting safety as a result.
The system works by sending information about the car’s location, how fast it’s going, brake applications, etc to vehicles traveling nearby. If there’s a slowdown ahead, the car-to-car communication tool in the vehicle will send out the information to other cars. An alert will be triggered in other cars, giving drivers information that the traffic is slowing down ahead. According to the NHTSA, adding this technology to a great deal of vehicles could help to save 1,000 lives each year. If the system is used widely, regulators believe that it could help to avoid 190,000 to 270,000 accidents.
If the rules are incorporated into law, the technology would only be a requirement in passenger vehicles.
Since it could help to avoid 80 percent of the crashes due to the increased flow of information the driver will receive, regulators are hopeful that the rules will be embraced. Nevertheless, many are raising concerns about the privacy issue with the technology. Until all questions and concerns are addressed, it’s important to note that the dissemination of important traffic information will also help to make the traffic flow much better as a result. With more drivers aware of potential problems ahead, they are also more likely to make better decisions.
If you’re curious to know why regulators are interested in making the use of this technology mandatory follow this link for more details.
