Posted on 12/30/2008 12:19:33 PM PST by BGHater
A panel from the Commission for Integrated Transport and the Motorists' Forum, both of which advise the Government on transport, say the technology would cut injuries from road accidents by 29 per cent and reduce carbon emissions.
The system would require detailed digital maps of Britain's roads, containing every speed limit, to be drawn up.
A device in vehicles would use satellite positioning technology to discover the limit in its location and reduce its speed if necessary.
The groups say the devices should be fitted on a voluntary basis and should contain a manual override feature, meaning drivers could break the speed limit if, for example, they were forced to overtake.
The report follows lengthy trials backed the Department for Transport, which has been in talks with the motor industry over how the devices could be made available.
John Lewis, who chaired the panel, said: "You can override the device that we're talking about, either by pressing a button on the steering wheel or by kicking down the accelerator as you would on an automatic car.
"But we conducted trials with 20 cars and 80 different drivers over an extended period, and actually the drivers found they changed their habits and changed their behaviour and might not have taken the risk of overtaking," he told BBC Radio 4's Today Programme.
However, critics have warned that a similar, existing system for truck drivers showed that the devices could cause drivers to not give driving their full attention.
Claire Armstrong, from the road safety charity Safe Speed, said: "They drive along at 56, they stick their foot on the floor because they know the equipment will not go any faster, and they pretty much go into fatigue mode, or zombie mode.
(Excerpt) Read more at telegraph.co.uk ...
meanwhile violent crime continues to rise unabated.
I'm guessing that's all they'll amount to.
They already come with speed limiting devices. The laws of physics.
The unreported second half to that statement is as follows: "... at least for now; but we'll soon have that loophole sewn up.
Automatic speech-limiting devices should be fitted to mouths of Liberals, Dentist says.
More good ideas from the UK.
Cars will drive themselves sooner rather than later. Smoke ‘em while you can.
The UK should just get chips implanted in their subjects’ brains. They want perfect control? Let them do it properly!
There were some trials of automatic highways in the late 90s IIRC. Neat idea on one hand, bad on the other.
Neat because you wouldn’t have to be stressed or basically do anything. Bad.....you have no control. Say goodbye to going 5 over. If the system crashes, major accidents could occur.
Would all British men please check their genitals at the nearest police station?
What's next?
I hope Microsoft isn’t a partner.
“Voluntary”. Har-dee-har-har.
But of course police cars wouldn’t be limited, right? One rule for us, another for them.
Just might work around these parts (suburban Chicago). I’m sick and tired of pacing some idiot at 45 mph when the posted speed is 55!
Why don’t they just cut to the chase...and implant chips in all our brains?
coming to A GM plant near you...........
Training a car to do a commute will be the easiest task. The DARPA desert and then city challenges drove development surprisingly quickly.
Oh, true, this isn’t an automated highway. I guess I was just responding to the comment that someday cars will drive themselves entirely.
Is this device Sharia compliant?
Holy smoke, the limeys have finally got the knives to kill all by themselves, the criminals must be livid, being cut out of the loop.
Was that a really bad pun?
It preys more than five time a day, so I would say yes.
Cut injuries from road accidents by 29 per cent and reduce carbon emissions? That’s a half-assed measure: a 99% reduction can be achieved simply by removing the ignition switch from all automobiles.
</sarc>
a number of years ago similar regulators were available on US cars - can’t recall what we called them. Some kids quickly learned how to override them.
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Another good example would be the “blow in the tube” interlocks for convicted drunk drivers,, the judges never heard of a bellows?
Or the no seatbelt no start interlocks we had for one year only , 1974 ...
Guv’nas perhaps? I know a lot of work trucks in my past had them.
I'm guessing that's all they'll amount to.
The odds of a lot of these hairbrained ideas becoming law these days are higher than they were in the past.....
“there’s been a flood of totalitarian fantasy headlines of late.”
“We will control the horizontal. We will control the vertical.”
One of my BMWs was limited to 90 and another to 150.
This belief was always Utopian in its conception. The truth is that most people either despise or fear freedom, and will gratefully accept varying degrees of economic, social and political control as an acceptable price with which to purchase security and to avoid the necessity of self-reliance.
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