Filed under: Safety, Technology
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The [National Highway Traffic Safety Administration](http://www.autoblog.com/tag/national highway traffic safety administration) has taken dead aim at stamping out [distracted driving](http://www.autoblog.com/tag/distracted driving) and with good reason. Last year, inattentive drivers caused around 950,000 accidents. But according to a new study by the Society of Automotive Engineers, there’s another issue causing even more accidents across the country: turn signal neglect. According to their research, drivers neglect their turn signals, either by failing to turn when their signal is activated or not activating the signal at all, an astonishing 750 billion times a year. What’s more, neglecting the signals may be responsible for as many as two million accidents per year.
SAE says the solution lies in the implementation of so-called “Smart Turn Signals,” which use sensors to shut off turn signals before they become a safety hazard. What’s more, engineers can integrate a “Turn Signal Assist” feature, which uses a vehicle information display to alert the driver if they fail to use turn signals on a regular basis or don’t shut them off in a timely manner. The report says that since the system uses sensors already integrated into the stability control module, there would be no cost added to the vehicle’s bottom line.
This is our skeptical face. We major proponents of proper and consistent turn signal use, but we’re bigger fans of creating smarter drivers through education than we are of building smarter cars. Hit the jump for the full press release.Continue reading Turn signal neglect results in over twice as many crashes as distracted driving
Turn signal neglect results in over twice as many crashes as distracted driving originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 30 Apr 2012 14:32:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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