Anti-Accident Technology
Though forward collision systems are being shown to help reduce or minimize crashes, other high-tech accident avoidance technology may not be as effective, based on tests conducted by the AAA in Orlando, Florida, in partnership with the Automobile Club of Southern California.
Specifically, the AAA found that blind-spot monitoring systems – which warn a driver to the presence of potentially unseen vehicles in adjacent lanes when changing lanes – had problems detecting fast-moving cars and motorcycles in time to take evasive action.
Lane departure warning systems – which signal an alert if the vehicle is inadvertently veering across highway lanes – varied in performance according to road conditions; worn pavement markers, construction zones and intersections in particular tend to confuse the technology.
“AAA’s tests found that these systems are a great asset to drivers, but it’s important to understand the limits of the technology,” says John Nielsen, AAA’s managing director of Automotive Engineering.