Speed Limiter, Data Recorder to be Mandatory in Vehicles Sold in Europe by 2022

By 2022, all cars, vans, trucks, and buses sold in Europe will be equipped with safety features like speed limiters and data recorders "to protect passengers, pedestrians and cyclists."

In a statement issued by the European Union's (EU) Commission on Road Safety, new technologies on the market can help reduce the number of fatalities and injuries on the roads, 90 percent of which are due to human error.

In May 2018, the Commission proposed to make certain vehicle safety measures mandatory, including systems that reduce the dangerous blind spots on trucks and buses and technology that warns the driver in case of drowsiness or distraction.

So, by 2022, all cars, vans, trucks, and buses will have the following as mandatory equipment: driver drowsiness and attention detection, intelligent speed assistance, reversing camera or detection system, and event data recorder.

For cars and vans, lane keeping assist, advanced emergency braking, and crash-test improved safety belts for front-seat occupants will also be mandatory by 2022. In addition, for trucks and buses, improved direct vision from the driver's position as well as front and side of the vehicle detection and warning on vulnerable road users, and a tire pressure monitoring system are also mandatory by 2022.

"Every year, 25,000 people lose their lives on our roads," said EU Commissioner Elżbieta Bieńkowska, responsible for Internal Market, Industry, Entrepreneurship, and SMEs. "The vast majority of these accidents are caused by human error. We can and must act to change this. With the new advanced safety features that will become mandatory, we can have the same kind of impact as when the safety belts were first introduced. Many of the new features already exist, in particular in high-end vehicles. Now we raise the safety level across the board, and pave the way for connected and automated mobility of the future."

The Commission expects that the proposed measures will help save over 25,000 lives and avoid at least 140,000 serious injuries by 2038. This will contribute to the EU's long-term goal of moving close to zero fatalities and serious injuries by 2050 as part of its 'Vision Zero' road traffic safety project.

In addition to protecting people on European roads, the new advanced safety features will help drivers get gradually used to the new driving assistance. According to the EU, increasing degrees of automation offer significant potential to compensate for human errors and offer new mobility solutions for the elderly and physically impaired, and should enhance public trust and acceptance of automated cars, "supporting the transition towards autonomous driving."