There was a time when seat belts were not automatically installed in vehicles. Over time, as the public began to understand that seat belts save lives, seat belts became more common. Eventually, installation of these safety devices became mandatory for auto manufacturers.
As the seat belt example illustrates, the auto industry does not always embrace safety technology of its own accord. Oftentimes, public awareness and regulatory pressure serve as necessary catalysts in order to inspire the auto industry to keep motorists and passengers safe. It seems that this trend is set to continue regarding the matter of collision avoidance technology.
The National Transportation Safety Board recently released a 60-page report on the subject. Auto manufacturers do not currently include this technology in all new vehicles for a variety of reasons. Chief among these reasons is a sense that consumers should be able to determine whether or not they want to pay extra for this specific safety feature.
In response to this concept of leaving the choice of whether or not to pay extra up to the consumer, the NTSB’s chairman responded impatiently that, “You don’t pay extra for your seat belt, and you shouldn’t have to pay extra for technology that can help prevent a collision altogether.”
What is this technology and why is it so important that even the NTSB’s chairman is comparing its value to that of seat belts? Please check back later this week as we will continue our discussion of this important topic in a future post.
Source: USA Today, “NTSB calls for collision avoidance systems on all cars,” Todd Spangler, June 9, 2015
