Autonomous Emergency Braking can slash the road toll

The Australasian New Car Assessment Program (ANCAP) today welcomed reports from Europe and the United States of America identifying the safety assist technology (SAT) Autonomous Emergency Braking (AEB) as a potential life-saver.

According to ANCAP’s sister organisation, Euro NCAP, real world performance data suggests that AEB can reduce crashes by up to 27% but only about 20% of European new car models have this technology.

In addition, results from research conducted in the USA by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) confirm that insurance claims on cars fitted with AEB have already reduced by 14%.

Given that AEB is only a relatively new technology and its penetration into the market is very modest, these figures are outstanding.

“AEB is yet another technology that offers the potential for significant reductions in the road toll and can probably be considered the next ‘seat belt’ or ‘Electronic Stability Control’ (ESC) equivalent in terms of saving lives,” said ANCAP Chief Executive Officer, Mr Nicholas Clarke.

“With the swift adoption of new technology like AEB, there is a real prospect that the road toll could be cut in half by 2020. In Europe, AEB is not restricted to higher priced models only, so we are hoping for early installation of AEB across the model range in Australia and New Zealand,” he said.

“Advanced safety assist technology can help remove the weakest link when it comes to car crashes; the driver.”

“We have already seen what SAT can do to protect road users - ESC has been the most significant life-saving technology since the seat belt. In 2008, ANCAP was the first of all New Car Assessment Programs worldwide to mandate ESC for a 5 star ANCAP safety rating,” Mr Clarke added.

AEB can help avoid crashes altogether or at the very least slow the vehicle and thus lower the risk and severity of a crash. The technology uses forward-looking radar, lidar and video cameras to monitor the view ahead of the car and alert the driver of impending dangers. If the driver doesn’t respond to the alerts the car starts to brake itself.

While AEB is currently an optional SAT under the recently published 2017 ANCAP Rating Road Map, ANCAP is continuing to gather information on the effectiveness of AEB with a view to mounting a case for AEB to become a mandatory element of the Road Map.

ANCAP is supported by all Australian and New Zealand motoring clubs, the Australian Government, the New Zealand Government, all Australian state governments, the Victorian Transport Accident Commission, NRMA Insurance and the FIA Foundation.

For a full list of ANCAP safety ratings and model specifications, and vehicle safety information visit ancap.com.au.