The U.S. Department of Transportation’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) recently finalized a new Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard to make automatic emergency braking (AEB), including pedestrian AEB, standard on all passenger cars and light trucks by September 2029.
The rule applies to nearly all vehicles with a gross vehicle weight rating of 10,000 pounds or less. The vehicles will be required to be able to stop to avoid contact with vehicles in front of them up to 62 miles per hour, be able to apply the brakes automatically up to 90 mph when a collision is imminent, and up to 45 mph when a pedestrian is detected.
AEB systems use sensors to detect when a collision is imminent and automatically applies the brakes if the driver has not. The systems must be able to detect pedestrians at both day and night.
“The new vehicle safety standards we finalized today will save hundreds of lives and prevent tens of thousands of injuries every year,” U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said.
It is estimated that at least 360 lives will be saved and at least 24,000 injuries prevented annually.
The NHTSA and the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration are finalizing a rule that would require heavy vehicles to have AEB.