Together with vehicle manufacturers and governments, United Nations Working Group Addressing the issues of advanced driving technology has passed a new regulation aimed at preventing unwanted sudden acceleration using technology that can detect objects in front and behind the vehicle.
Tokyo driver
Data from Asia and Europe shows that older drivers tend to make this dangerous mistake more often. In Japan, they are eight times more likely to mistakenly step on the gas pedal than other generations, prompting Tokyo to propose a draft United Nations regulation to address the problem.
UNECE – the United Nations agency with overall responsibility for road safety regulations worldwide – notes that there are likely to be more similar accidents in the future, given the number of people aged 65 and over worldwide is expected to double by 2050.
Transmission problem
For example, in Japan, the number of drivers over 75 years old is expected to increase from 4 percent in 2009 to more than 9 percent next year.
The UN agency also warned that the rise in global sales of automatic transmission cars is another factor that could be contributing to more pedal-related crashes.
This review is based on accident data from the UK which shows that seven out of eight “misplaced pedal” incidents involved automatic vehicles.
Therefore, the new UN regulations will only apply to automated passenger vehicles. It is expected that the regulation will take effect in June 2025, although this is not a mandatory start date.
Greener braking for electric vehicles
In a related development, a similar meeting of the United Nations Working Party on Autonomous or Connected and Autonomous Vehicles (GRVA) in Geneva also approved a new braking system that is safer and greener for electric cars.
Unlike braking systems on vehicles with internal combustion engines – pneumatic or hydraulic, which rely on energy converted from fossil fuels – Electric vehicles cannot do this effectivelyThat is why the council’s experts have tested and approved new braking technology that uses stored electrical energy, which offers an equivalent level of safety, the working group said.
The new regulations apply to both light and heavy vehicles and are expected to come into effect in June 2025. UNECE said: “Some manufacturers are expected to introduce new braking systems that comply with compliance with regulations by the end of 2025”.
