https://arstechnica.com/cars/2023/05/automatic-emergency-braking-should-become-mandatory-feds-say/ Skip to main content * Biz & IT * Tech * Science * Policy * Cars * Gaming & Culture * Store * Forums Subscribe [ ] Close Navigate * Store * Subscribe * Videos * Features * Reviews * RSS Feeds * Mobile Site * About Ars * Staff Directory * Contact Us * Advertise with Ars * Reprints Filter by topic * Biz & IT * Tech * Science * Policy * Cars * Gaming & Culture * Store * Forums Settings Front page layout Grid List Site theme light dark Sign in AEB+pedestrian detection -- Automatic emergency braking should become mandatory, feds say The rule would save 360 lives and prevent 24,000 crashes a year, NHTSA says. Jonathan M. Gitlin - May 31, 2023 8:46 pm UTC A Volvo driver gets an emergency braking alert Enlarge / Emergency braking systems have been on the road for some years, but now the federal government wants them to be mandatory equipment on all new light trucks and passenger cars. Volvo reader comments 236 with On Wednesday, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration issued a notice of proposed rulemaking that would see automatic emergency braking become a standard feature on all new light passenger vehicles. If adopted, NHTSA says it would save 360 lives and prevent 24,000 crashes each year. The feature uses a forward-looking sensor--usually radar but in some cases a camera--to detect whether a vehicle in front is slowing rapidly, alerting the driver if so and, should it be necessary, activating the brakes to slow the car. "Today, we take an important step forward to save lives and make our roadways safer for all Americans," Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said. "Just as lifesaving innovations from previous generations like seat belts and airbags have helped improve safety, requiring automatic emergency braking on cars and trucks would keep all of us safer on our roads." NHTSA added automatic emergency braking to its list of recommended safety features in 2015. At the time, it started noting the presence or absence of this advanced driver assistance system when determining a car's rating under the New Car Assessment Program (NCAP), which is aimed at giving consumers safety information about new vehicles. Advertisement Automakers started making automatic emergency braking a standard feature before any government mandate. In 2015, 10 manufacturers told NHTSA and the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety that they would start including the feature on all their new cars. The following year , another 10 joined the pledge to make the function standard by 2022, bringing nearly all of the auto industry into the agreement. Analyses of the effect of automatic emergency braking on crash reductions showed that the tech works. A metanalysis in 2015 found a 38 percent decrease in collisions for vehicles that utilized such a system, for instance. But it's not entirely perfect. NHTSA wants standard automatic emergency braking systems to include pedestrian detection, but a 2019 study by the Automobile Association of America found that higher speeds or low light conditions seriously degraded performance. An overactive emergency braking system is undesirable, too--both Tesla and Honda have been investigated by NHTSA as a result of "phantom braking" complaints, where oversensitive or badly designed systems throw false positives, sometimes causing a crash in the process as the cars brake inappropriately. reader comments 236 with Jonathan M. Gitlin Jonathan is the Automotive Editor at Ars Technica. He has a BSc and PhD in Pharmacology. In 2014 he decided to indulge his lifelong passion for the car by leaving the National Human Genome Research Institute and launching Ars Technica's automotive coverage. He lives in Washington, DC. Advertisement Channel Ars Technica - Previous story Next story - Related Stories Today on Ars * Store * Subscribe * About Us * RSS Feeds * View Mobile Site * Contact Us * Staff * Advertise with us * Reprints Newsletter Signup Join the Ars Orbital Transmission mailing list to get weekly updates delivered to your inbox. Sign me up - CNMN Collection WIRED Media Group (c) 2023 Conde Nast. All rights reserved. Use of and/or registration on any portion of this site constitutes acceptance of our User Agreement (updated 1/1/20) and Privacy Policy and Cookie Statement (updated 1/1 /20) and Ars Technica Addendum (effective 8/21/2018). Ars may earn compensation on sales from links on this site. Read our affiliate link policy. Your California Privacy Rights | Do Not Sell My Personal Information The material on this site may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, cached or otherwise used, except with the prior written permission of Conde Nast. Ad Choices