Vision Australia is calling on the Australian Government to mandate the use of an acoustic vehicle warning system (AVAS) for electric vehicles.
The organization has been campaigning for mandatory audible warnings since 2018.
It has now signed a draft Regulatory Impact Statement calling on the Australian Government to introduce an Australian Design Rule (ADR) for these systems.
Electric vehicles can pose a threat to blind or low-vision pedestrians who rely on sound to navigate roads independently and safely.
A study by Vision Australia and Monash University’s Accident Research Center found that more than one in three participants who were blind or had low vision said they had been in an accident or near-collision with a tram. due to no noise.
An international regulation has been developed for this feature, United Nations Regulation 138/01 (UN R138/01), which specifies audible warnings for both light and heavy electric vehicles traveling in speed up to 20 km/h.
The Australian Government is seeking feedback on the introduction of this feature mandatory ADR for new light electric vehicles locally, although the Government has said there is insufficient data to fully assess the AVAS mandate. for heavy vehicles.
However, it is interested in information on the costs, benefits and feasibility of making AVAS mandatory for heavy electric vehicles in the future.
“Vision Australia is grateful that the current Federal Government has listened to our recommendations and is acting in the interests of all road users,” said Chris Edwards, director of public relations and advocacy Government, NDIS and aged care by Vision Australia said.
“With electric vehicles predicted to make up 90% of all Australian vehicles by 2050, this result has important implications for everyone, especially as we understand that crashes on Pedestrian paths cost the Australian community more than $1.2 billion a year. But – the personal cost is enormous.”
Most major vehicle markets including Europe and the United Kingdom, Japan, Korea, China and the United States have required acoustic vehicle warning systems in electric vehicles.
In 2019, Europe, South Korea, the United States, and China made the feature mandatory, and Japan followed suit in 2020.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) in the United States is currently reviewing a petition calling for 9.1 million electric vehicles manufactured before the mandatory 2019 deadline to be retrofit this technology.
