Automatic emergency braking (AEB) mandate proposed for U.S. trucks

U.S. regulators are looking to require automatic emergency braking (AEB) systems on heavy vehicles in a bid to reduce the number and severity of rear-end crashes.

News of the initiative emerged June 22 in a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking from the U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) and Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA).

AEB systems use radar and camera-based sensors to detect situations where crashes are imminent and automatically apply brakes if drivers have yet to act, or apply addition braking force to supplement driver actions.

Under the proposed standards, the technology would need to work between 6 and 50 mph (10 and 80 km/h). 

Substantial safety problem

“The safety problem addressed by AEB is substantial,” regulators say in the proposal.

NHTSA says heavy vehicles are the striking vehicle in 60,000 rear-end crashes a year — about 11% of all crashes involving heavy vehicles. The proposed rule would annually prevent an estimated 19,118 crashes, save 155 lives, and prevent 8,814 injuries, according to its estimates.

A similar rule proposed to require AEB systems in passenger vehicles and light trucks is expected to save 360 lives a year and reduce injuries by at least 24,000 annually.

The heavy-vehicle notice also proposes new Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations requiring electronic stability control and AEB systems to be on when vehicles are operated.

‘The power to save lives’

The Truck Safety Coalition, Center for Auto Safety, Advocates for Highway and Auto Safety, and Road Safe America petitioned for automatic forward collision avoidance and mitigation systems on heavy vehicles in 2015. And the rulemaking also supports recommendations made by the National Transportation Safety Board.

NHTSA began studying the related technologies more than 15 years ago. Most recently it found that a 2021 Freightliner Cascadia with AEB could avoid collisions with lead vehicles at speeds between 40 and 85 km/h.

“Advanced driver assistance systems like AEB have the power to save lives,” NHTSA chief counsel Ann Carlson said in a press release. “Today’s announcement is an important step forward in improving safety on our nation’s roadways by reducing, and ultimately eliminating, preventable tragedies that harm Americans.”

“Establishing AEB standards is a key component of the department’s National Roadway Safety Strategy,” added FMCSA Administrator Robin Hutcheson. “This technology can enhance the effectiveness of commercial motor vehicle crash reduction strategies and reduce roadway fatalities.”

Public comments on the proposed rule will be accepted for 60 days.