NHTSA Proposes AEB Requirements

In an effort to reduce crashes, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has announced proposed rulemaking that "would require automatic emergency braking and pedestrian AEB systems on passenger cars and light trucks," according to a press release. 

NHTSA says adopting this rule could save around 360 lives a year and injuries could reduce annually by 24,000. The proposed rule is part of the U.S. Department of Transportation’s National Roadway Safety Strategy, which aims to tackle the "national crisis in traffic fatalities and serious injuries."

“We’ve seen the benefits of the AEB system in some passenger vehicles already even at lower speeds, and we want to expand the use of the technology to save even more lives. That’s why our proposed rule would require all cars to be able to stop and avoid contact with a vehicle in front of them up to 62 miles per hour. And the proposal would require pedestrian AEB, including requiring that AEB recognize and avoid pedestrians at night,” NHTSA Chief Counsel Ann Carlson said. “This proposed rule is a major safety advancement.”

If the proposal is adopted as-is, almost every light vehicle in the United States would "be required to have AEB technology three years after the publication of a final rule."