Ending the Speed Demon !

From 2022 - just three years from now - all new cars sold in the European Union will by law be fitted with speed limiting devices.  The cars cameras will have the ability to read, interpret and obey the speed signs that govern the legal speed and theoretically it will be impossible to travel faster than the posted signage.  When travelling in suburban streets which are not speed posted, the cars navigation instruments will simply impose the prima facie limit which in Australia is 50 kph.

The one limiting factor is that this technology can be turned off by the driver.  The option of using it will be available while the conversion to self driving cars advances, but when the time comes for the removal of the steering wheel the speed of all cars on the road will be governed in this way.

There is the expectation that driving will become rather boring.  Taking away the skill factor of judging speed and having braking controlled by technology that stops for traffic lights and pedestrian crossings and takes care of proximity to cyclists and other vehicles reduces the human skill to that of simply steering the juggernaut.

It also delivers an interesting safety feature to law enforcement.   It is not hard to envisage the penalty for a speeding fine being that speed limiting device imposed for a period of time, just as the installation of a breathalyser is often the penalty for a DUI  offence.   Obviously, the penalty for an offender caught driving without that limitation in place would need to be very heavy.

It opens interesting options for limiting the speed of newly licensed drivers.  It might become the law that red " P " plate drivers can only legally drive in speed controlled vehicles for the duration of that license restriction.  There could be a form of compensation in a reduced tariff for both car insurance and the third party green slip as this form of speed control would obviously sharply reduce the crash rate for young drivers.

It would also reduce the death toll from road accidents and speed the introduction of new vehicles.  It would not be economic to retro-fit older vehicles with this technology and there is the expectation that second hand vehicles would lose value.  This form of technology will be included in all classes of vehicles and is not expected to significantly increase the selling price.

There is every expectation that new cars sold here from 2022 will automatically include this speed innovation.  It is part of the evolution of the self driving car and it will be part of the need to acclimatize drivers as new technology varies the driving experience.  No doubt there will be financial incentives to get drivers to remove the turn off option and adopt automatic speed control.

In a short space of time we should see an improvement in commute times.   It will be an interesting mix of cars using both speed options but with the expectation that speed control will quickly become dominant.  Cars with a speed obsessed driver in control will have fewer chances of exercising that option when trapped in a car flow that is using flow control traffic lights to reach their destination without endless delays.

Speed control is an inevitable staging point in the move to self driving cars.