Page 24 - AT

A24 TECHNOLOGY
Thursday 14 February 2019
40 countries agree cars must have automatic braking

By JAMEY KEATEN the most recent report on spokesman for the agen-
Associated Press the safety technology from cy, called United Nations
GENEVA (AP) — Forty coun- 2017, the National Highway Economic Commission for
tries led by Japan and the Traffic Safety Administra- Europe, or UNECE. The Eu-
European Union — but not tion said that four of the 20 ropean Union, and some
the U.S. or China — have automakers — Tesla, Mer- of its closest neighbors, is
agreed to require new cedes-Benz, Toyota and expected to follow suit in
cars and light commercial Volvo — had made auto- 2022.
vehicles to be equipped matic braking standard on UNECE says the countries
with automated braking more than half their mod- that agreed to the deal
systems starting as soon as els. want to be more pro-ac-
next year, a U.N. agency Data from the insurance in- tive in fighting roadway
said Tuesday. dustry's Highway Loss Data accidents, particularly in
The regulation will require Institute show that 28 per- urban settings where ob-
all vehicles sold to come cent of 2019 U.S. models stacles like pedestrians,
equipped with the technol- In this Sunday, Feb. 3, 2019, photograph, a long row of unsold have standard automatic scooters, bicycles and
2019 911 Carrera GTS cabriolets sits at a Porsche dealership in
ogy by which sensors moni- Littleton, Colo. emergency braking. An- other cars in close proxim-
tor how close a pedestrian Associated Press other 36 percent have it as ity abound. The agency
or object might be. The sys- an option. pointed to more than 9,500
tem can trigger the brakes tries — so vehicle owners that their national regula- Jason Levine, executive roadway deaths in the EU
automatically if a collision won't be required to retro- tions keep precedence director of the nonprofit in 2016, and EU Commission
is deemed imminent and if fit their cars and trucks al- over U.N. rules when it Center for Auto Safety, said estimates that the braking
the driver doesn't appear ready on the roads today. comes to the auto industry. lack of U.S. participation in systems could help save
set to respond in time. The United States, China In 2016, 20 automakers the U.N. group is embar- over 1,000 lives a year in
The measure will apply to and India are members reached an agreement rassing for a country that the bloc.
vehicles at "low speeds": of the U.N. forum that ad- with the U.S. government to once led in auto safety. Apparently wary that the
60 kilometers per hour (42 opted the new regulations. put automatic emergency "It is yet another indica- regulations might be seen
mph) or less, and only af- However, they did not take braking on all new vehicles tion of the auto industry as a step toward giving ar-
fects new cars sold in the part in the negotiations be- by September of 2022, but in the United States and tificial intelligence prece-
markets of signatory coun- cause they want to ensure compliance is voluntary. In the Trump administration's dence over humans, the
complete lack of leader- drafters put in clear lan-
ship when it comes to the guage in their resolution:
safety of everyone on the A driver can take control
road," Levine said Tuesday. and override these auto-
A message was left Tues- mated braking systems at
day seeking comment any time, such as through
from NHTSA, the U.S. high- "a steering action or an ac-
way safety agency. celerator kick-down."
The requirement will start UNECE says the new rules
taking effect next year first build on existing U.N. rules
in Japan, where 4 million on the braking system for
cars and light commercial trucks and buses, mainly for
vehicles were sold in 2018, safety in higher-speed mo-
said Jean Rodriguez, the torway conditions.q
DHS cyber leader

says 2020 security

preparations underway

WASHINGTON (AP) — The ter inform Americans.
director of Homeland Se- Krebs was testifying
curity's cybersecurity agen- Wednesday before the
cy says officials are working House Homeland Secu-
to secure the 2020 presi- rity Committee, now under
dential election. Democratic control.
Christopher Krebs says he's Intelligence officials last
trying to shift focus from week gave President Don-
what happened in 2016 ald Trump a classified re-
with Russian interference to port on the 2018 midterm
what could happen next. election that said no evi-
He's trying to get election dence was found that ef-
security officials to think forts by Russians or other
ahead and prepare for foreign groups affected
possibilities. election or campaign in-
But he also says even the frastructure.
threat of a disruption can But the details remain
sow discord, and the gov- classified.q
ernment is working to bet-