GM Leads Way on NHTSA’s Mandatory Initiative
The days of intoxicated driving will quickly come to a close, as the government appears to be determined to encourage automakers to fit vehicles with safety precautions to prevent operation when the driver is under the influence of alcohol.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) recently took an initiative to create a passing legislation when they released an Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking that requires car makers to install impaired driving detecting technology underneath a new Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard.
While the ambition is to have legislative acceptance by November 2024, the automotive industry is already formulating plans for it. Mary Barra, Chief Executive Officer of General Motors declared that the technology is advancing and GM is presently occupied with it, implying subsequent-gen cars such as the Cadillac Vistiq could be first to acquire it.
Barra was speaking at the Economic Club of Washington on Wednesday when she addressed the issue. “We’ve been working with regulators on that,” she said. “We have technology to do that. … I think that’s technology that’s coming that I think is going to be good for everyone.”
Since 2021, the NHTSA has been attempting to counteract this problem, when initially commencing similar attempts in 2015. Back then, the government allowed the NHTSA three years to try and find a response, and it looks like they have strived hard in collaboration with car makers to make this dream come true.
“It is tragic that drunk driving crashes are one of the leading causes of roadway fatalities in this country and far too many lives are lost,” said Polly Trottenberg, the US Department of Transportation’s Deputy Secretary. “That is why we are taking action to help protect the public from these preventable deaths. The Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking we are announcing today is the first step toward a new safety standard requiring alcohol-impaired-driving prevention technology in new passenger vehicles.”
GM isn’t the solely automotive business included here. Last year, executives of Toyota revealed to CarBuzz how they were going to be organizing a Hackathon to provoke engineers to craft technology to impede intoxicated driving. At that same affair, Toyota had recently presented their innovative cabin awareness tech in a Sienna Minivan, and if this advanced tech was standard in all upcoming Siennas, families across America would benefit greatly from reduced dangers posed by drunken driving.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) reveals that driving with alcohol costs the USA a total of $280 billion yearly, consisting of lost income, healthcare expenditure and other costs associated with it as it is one of the most dangerous causes of highway fatalities in the United States.
Results from the most recent drunk driving research for 2021 reveal that 13,384 individuals perished in incidents caused by intoxicated operating of vehicles. December 2021 alone reported over 1,000 deaths related to this grim issue.
