From 7 July 2024, all new cars in Europe will legally have to be fitted with a mandatory speed limiter/Intelligent Speed Assist (ISA)* according to the 2019/2044 regulation by the European Commission.
The ISA system is required to work with the driver and not to restrict his/her possibility to act in any moment during driving. The driver is always in control and can easily override the ISA system.
The ISA regulation provides four options for systems feedback to the driver, from which car manufacturers will be free to choose from:
- Cascaded acoustic warning
- Cascaded vibrating warning
- Haptic feedback through the acceleration pedal
- Speed control function
The first two feedback options do not directly intervene but only provide warnings (first optic and if no response from the driver, a delayed acoustic/vibrating warning), which have to be as short as possible in duration to avoid potential annoyance of the driver.
The other possible feedback relies on the pedal restoring force – it will push the driver’s foot gently back to make the driver aware and help to slow down. The driver can ignore this feedback and override the system by pushing slightly harder on the acceleration pedal. Even in the case of speed control function, where the car speed will be automatically gently reduced, the system can be smoothly overridden by the driver by pressing the accelerator pedal a little bit deeper.
The EU says that the roll out of ISA is a huge step forward for road safety and has the potential to dramatically reduce road traffic injuries and fatalities. Car manufacturers now have the opportunity to maximise the potential ISA presents for creating safer roads for all.
Despite Brexit, the rules will also apply to Northern Ireland, but the Department for Transport have clarified that they will not apply to England, Scotland and Wales. All new cars, vans and buses will need to be fitted with an ISA.
The specific type of ISA system will depend on the vehicle manufacturer.
Sue Robinson, Chief Executive of the National Franchised Dealers Association (NFDA) which represents car and commercial retailers across the UK commented: “With speed limiters becoming mandatory on new vehicles from 7 July, dealerships in Northern Ireland will ensure that all regulations are met. This is important to ensure safety on the UK’s roads.”
RAC road safety spokesperson Rod Dennis said: “While it’s not currently mandated that cars sold in the UK have to be fitted with Intelligent Speed Assistance (ISA) systems, we’d be surprised if manufacturers deliberately excluded the feature from those they sell in the UK as it would add unnecessary cost to production.
“Anyone getting a new vehicle would be well advised to familiarise themselves with ISA and how it works. In practice, if a driver exceeds the speed limit, an audible warning is sounded and then the car’s speed is automatically reduced. But a driver can still press hard on the accelerator to override it momentarily, for instance to negotiate a hazard in the road ahead.
“But just because a vehicle’s speed can be limited doesn’t mean drivers should accelerate as fast as possible to the speed limit. It’s important to always drive at the right speed for the conditions, whether that’s due to traffic, bad weather or other hazards.”
