:Speed cameras divide opinion, but what if you weren’t able to speed in the first place? Is speed curbing the future?
- What's the big idea?Speed curbing - also known as intelligent speed assistance/adaptation (ISA) - is the concept of making the car, not the driver, responsible for sticking to the speed limit.
- Cars fitted with an ISA device would prevent the driver from accelerating beyond the maximum permitted speed limit in any given area.There are three technologies that can enable ISA.
- The first is GPS (global positioning system). Like in-car navigation systems, this uses signals from orbiting satellites to triangulate the car’s position.
- This position is then compared with an onboard map which contains speed limit data for all roads to determine the maximum permissible speed.
- Another idea is that roadside signs could contain small transmitters which broadcast data about the speed limit and other traffic conditions in the area.
- A receiver in the car would pick up this information and prevent the vehicle from travelling faster.Then there’s optical road sign recognition. A camera in the car reads signs at the side of the road. The onboard computer remembers the last sign read and prevents the car from travelling beyond the assigned speed.T
- hese technologies can also be complemented by dead reckoning – a technology that is already used as a failsafe device on some high-end in-car navigation systems. This estimates the car’s current position by comparing the last known position to the subsequent steering input and wheel rotation.
- Britain’s first experimental ISA scheme is being carried out by Transport for London (TfL) the authority responsible for the capital’s tubes, trains, buses and transport infrastructure. Currently three vehicles; a car, a bus and a black cab, have been fitted with GPS-based ISA systems. But the trial is to be extended to more than 20 vehicles.The TfL system, developed in conjunction with Dutch technology firm Technolution, operates in two modes: 'advisory ' and 'voluntary'.
- In the first of these modes an icon on the dashboard smiles when the car is travelling within the current speed limit, but it frowns if the car exceeds the speed limit.
- The driver is still able to break the speed limit. But in 'voluntary ' mode, computer control takes over, limiting the speed if the driver tries to exceed the limit, and progressively slowing down when a speed limit decreases.It's the 'voluntary ' mode that has caused concern among some motoring organisations.
- But even the 'advisory ' mode is believed to contribute to road safety. TfL hopes the scheme will stimulate commercial development of ISA devices. The trial units cost £400,000 to develop and it cost a further £220,000 to compile the database of all speed limits within London’s M25 orbital motorway.
- This data has been made available to manufacturers of GPS navigation devices for use in their systems.
- Arguments forIncreased safety. If all cars stayed within the speed limit, there would be fewer accidents. A Leeds University study estimates that even 'advisory ' ISA systems could cut collisions by 10 per cent. Without having to worry about speed limits, drivers can concentrate more clearly on the road ahead.Eliminates mistakes.
- Who hasn’t driven at 40 mph in a 30 mph zone because they missed the sign showing the lower speed limit? A 'voluntary ' ISA system would mean that you always know what the speed limit is.
- An 'advisory ' ISA system would ensure that you never break the speed limit. So you wouldn’t have to worry about points on your licence and speeding fines.Better fuel economy.
- The current system of speed limits and enforcement cameras has led to a speed-up-and-brake style of driving where cars are constantly braking and accelerating. By anticipating speed limit changes, and adjusting the speed accordingly, ISA systems save energy that is usually lost to braking.
- Arguments againstIncreased cost. It's estimated that ISA systems would add around £500 to the purchase price of a new vehicle. And what of all the existing cars on the road? Would it be made compulsory to fit after-market ISA systems to existing vehicles.Decreased safety. There are occasions when one needs to accelerate to get out of danger, when merging onto the motorway for instance, or when trying to get out of the blind spot of a vehicle merging from the left.
- If you are already driving at the speed limit, a 'voluntary ' ISA system would prevent you from accelerating out of danger.Erosion of liberty.
- If human beings are stripped of personal responsibility for their actions they feel that their liberty has been eroded. Rather than being drivers, might we become passengers, driven around by a big brother state? And what if the technology goes wrong? GPS signals cannot always be received under bridges and in tunnels.
- While optical sign recognition technology is very much in its infancy and may not pick up signs that have been vandalised or obscured by overhanging branches.
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