Automakers will be required to install backup cameras in most new vehicles by May 2018, a federal agency announced Monday.
… Automakers haven’t been previously required to include these systems but NHTSA did recommend it, saying it can save many deaths and injuries from backover crashes. There are nearly 210 backover deaths each year, the agency said. About a third of those deaths are children, and many are caused by parents, it said.
Rear facing cameras, including those that automakers already offer, would save between 59 and 69 deaths a year, NHTSA said.
So my Ford Edge has an option for a backup camera. My unit doesn’t have the option mostly because it would have tied us to a higher trim package, would have forced us to have the terrible touchscreen interface which I consider downright dangerous as you need to constantly take your eye off the road to do basic tasks like turn on the radio or adjust the climate control, and for the little value it adds in my opinion the cost wasn’t worth it. My car DOES have a backup sensor which I think will do the job almost as well when it comes to backing over playing kids.
Still video cameras and LCD screens are getting VERY cheap so the cost is trivial when you note that even the cheapest new car is running north of $12,000. Still with any safety device you need to USE it for it to take effect, and people will STILL be negligent drivers especially when backing out of their VERY familiar driveway.
Also the slippery slope argument is REALLY obvious here:
“Today, the government has stepped forward as a strong advocate for cameras on cars, and this action helps pave the way for using cameras in other ways on vehicles,” the Auto Alliance said in a statement. It also pledged to ask “NHTSA to allow automakers to remove side-view mirrors and replace them with cameras that may expand side vision while increasing fuel efficiency.”
I’ve never seen a car with the side mirrors replaced by cameras, so I can’t comment on it much, but I will note that depending on where the screens are placed it may take the driver’s eyes off the road more than they should be. When I was learning to drive my Father caught me looking in my mirrors a lot, being new and green I wanted to gather as much information as possible, but my Father pointed out that the important stuff is happening directly out the windshield, and the mirrors are just for quick glances at critical moments like switching lanes or reversing.
In the end I see nothing wrong with adding GOOD technology to a vehicle for safety, but mandating for the ever-present “If it saves just one life” never really convinces me. Also technology can fail. My backup sensors have been clogged with snow making them worthless, I’ve certainly had my back window obscured by mud and dust, and I don’t see how a camera lens can avoid this. When technology fails the ancient technology of mirrors will likley still be working, and you MUST know how to use them.
H/T Mrs. Weer’d
