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posted by chromas on Thursday March 28 2019, @04:00PM   Printer-friendly
from the two-minutes-hate dept.

The EU is moving forward with legislation to require ISA, Intelligent Speed Assistance, in all new cars starting in 2022. This system will use GPS, map databases, and speed limit reading cameras to limit speed. Speed limiting will be accomplished by limiting engine power. Drivers can temporarily override the system by pressing down hard on the accelerator. It seems that, at least to start, the system will have an off button. Other requirements of the legislation include a system to monitor the driver for drowsiness, and inattention, as well as standard hookups for in car breathalysers. It seems the driver monitoring systems may include in car cameras pointed at the driver.

Sources:

thisismoney.co.uk
fortune.com
euractiv.com
theengineer.co.uk
gizmodo.com

Previously on Soylent: Volvo: In-Car Cameras Will Monitor Drivers and Take Action to Prevent Distracted or Impaired Driving


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  • (Score: 2) by darkfeline on Thursday March 28 2019, @09:53PM (7 children)

    by darkfeline (1030) on Thursday March 28 2019, @09:53PM (#821526) Homepage

    Even if we're designing cars to better protect the meatbags within, I don't think we're getting much better at avoiding collisions in the first place. I don't think improved safety means we can feel free to crash two ton blocks of metal into other people and their property on a regular basis.

    Reducing speed is a great way to reduce the amount of potential damage.

    Vehicle Speed Odds of Pedestrian Death
    20 mph 5%
    30 mph 45%
    40 mph 85%

    The exact numbers vary by source, but the trend is just physics. More speed means way more damage. Just slow the fuck down.

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  • (Score: 1, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Friday March 29 2019, @02:30AM (1 child)

    by Anonymous Coward on Friday March 29 2019, @02:30AM (#821639)

    Vehicle Speed Odds of Pedestrian Death

    Pedestrians who keep themselves away from being in the line of impact with a vehicle have a 100% survival rating.

    Keep the pedestrians out from in front of the moving hunks of metal, and pedestrian deaths will plummet.

    I've seen too many pedestrians simply walk out in front of moving traffic, oblivious as to how close a moving hunk of metal may be, simply because they think the laws of physics do not apply to them.

    • (Score: 3, Informative) by Immerman on Friday March 29 2019, @02:37PM

      by Immerman (3985) on Friday March 29 2019, @02:37PM (#821810)

      And I've seen too many in accidents that have taken them on to the sidewalk, or into somebody's living room.

      Also, pedestrians always have the right of way - even the stupid Darwin-award candidates that step out from behind a van directly into the path of your car. If it was likely physically impossible for someone obeying the speed limit to stop in time, you'll likely not face punishment. But if you hit them because you were distracted, or doing 35mph in a 25mph zone to double your braking distance, and likely killing someone instead of just breaking them up badly, then that's totally on you. Speed limits aren't just so you can keep your car under control, they're also so that everyone in the area knows how fast to expect traffic to be going.

  • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday March 29 2019, @08:01AM (3 children)

    by Anonymous Coward on Friday March 29 2019, @08:01AM (#821694)

    They lowered all speed down to 40kmph around schools. For a while it was highly dangerous. A.driver spending their time watching their speedo to make sure they don't go over is far more dangerous than a driver watching the road.

    I find myself doing this. Enter a 40 zone. Slow down. Keep a careful watch on the speedo. Leave. Frankly I do not see much except the speedo and the road directly in front. If a kid runs in front of me they are probably going to be Darwined

    • (Score: 2) by Immerman on Friday March 29 2019, @06:57PM (2 children)

      by Immerman (3985) on Friday March 29 2019, @06:57PM (#821975)

      One of the reasons I 'm annoyed by a lower limit on cruise control. If I hit an abnormally slow section of road, like a school zone, especially without other traffic to pace myself by, I much prefer to turn on the cruise control and leave my foot hovering over the brake. Minimizes distraction and stopping time. Sadly, most of the time it seems like cruise control won't work until you're going at least 25-30mph. Waste of a good tool.

      • (Score: 2) by Unixnut on Friday March 29 2019, @08:38PM (1 child)

        by Unixnut (5779) on Friday March 29 2019, @08:38PM (#822021)

        What irritates me about the new blanket 20mph limit in my area (apart from the fact it is on a road that was originally 50, then 40mph) is that it sits in between gears. So I can either keep myself in 1st gear and the engine revs are around 3k so I sound like a tosser going down the road (plus my fuel economy goes down and emissions goes up), or I shift into second and the engine struggles at near idle (or I ride the clutch in 2nd, which works, but wears out the clutch as well as the clutch bearings). Cars gearing is designed for 20mph to be a transitional speed, in between 20mph for creeping along and 25mph+ for driving. The irony is the drop in speed limits was to "help the environment" and reduce emissions, but I end up emitting more as a result of it (as do others I suspect).

        And yes, cruise control never works below 30mph, on any car I have been in. I guess the logic is that you should only use it on long empty stretches of road, not in slow dense areas where you need to be fully concentrating. My car has a nice feature you can turn on, where if you exceed 20mph it beeps at you as a warning, so I don't have to keep my eyes glued to the speedo at low speeds.

        • (Score: 2) by Immerman on Friday March 29 2019, @09:02PM

          by Immerman (3985) on Friday March 29 2019, @09:02PM (#822030)

          Yep, never overestimate the ability of politicians to "fix" technical problems.

          I used to have a car that would let cruise control engage at 15+mph. As I recall it was also one of the few that would apply braking to avoid going too fast

  • (Score: 1) by khallow on Friday March 29 2019, @01:52PM

    by khallow (3766) Subscriber Badge on Friday March 29 2019, @01:52PM (#821788) Journal

    I don't think improved safety means we can feel free to crash two ton blocks of metal into other people and their property on a regular basis.

    The important stuff we accomplish by driving is what makes us feel free to very slightly increase risks to ourselves and others.