Lane departure warning systems are preventing accidents, an Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) study shows.
The IIHS reviewed police reports from 2015 and noted crash details. The data showed that lane departure warning systems lower single-vehicle, sideswipe and head-on crashes of all severities by 11 percent and the injury rates by 21 percent. The fatal crash rate was deduced 86 percent.
If all vehicles were equipped with the system, approximately 85,000 crashes and more than 55,000 injuries could have been prevented, the data found.
“This is the first evidence that lane departure warning is working to prevent crashes of passenger vehicles on U.S. roads,” Jessica Cicchino, IIHS vice president for research, said. “Given the large number of fatal crashes that involve unintentional lane departures, technology aimed at preventing them has the potential to save a lot of lives.”
The IIHS found that 34 percent of lane departure accidents were caused by drivers who were ill or had fallen asleep.
Blind spot detection systems also are preventing accidents, another study found. These systems lowered the rate of all lane-change crashes by 14 percent and injuries by 23 percent.
If every vehicle had the systems, 50,000 accidents would be prevented annually, Cicchino said.
Review cameras and autobrake systems also prevent accidents, previous IIHS studies found.