NHTSA may impose more safety features

Posted on Thursday, July 2nd, 2009 at 2:49 PM EDT.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration will decide whether to require two advanced safety features in new cars: systems that warn drivers when they are leaving a lane and automatically brake ahead of an impending crash, The Detroit News reported.
 
Safety experts told the paper that both systems show significant promise to sharply reduce the more than 40,000 yearly traffic fatalities and 2.5 million injuries in vehicle crashes. In a report released Wednesday, NHTSA said it “will decide whether to require automatic crash-imminent braking … (and) automatic lane-keeping” in 2011. It also sought public comment on its plans, the News said.

“These are two very promising technologies, but whether or not you can justify through cost-benefit analysis, requiring them remains to be seen,” said Rae Tyson, a spokesman for NHTSA, the paper said. NHTSA already has developed a performance test for frontal-crash and lane-departure warning systems that it plans to make a part of its revamped New Car Assessment Program starting in the 2011 model year, the story said. (The Detroit News)

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