Volvo will be able to watch you drive and pull over if you seem distracted
Eyes off the road? As soon as next year, Volvo’s cars will be able to pull over automatically — thanks to cameras that watch you as you drive.
Earlier this month, the Swedish company announced its future cars will have a max speed limit of 112 mph. Now, the company says it's introducing in-car cameras and sensors that monitor the driver for signs of distraction or intoxication — which include looking away from the road for too long, keeping your hands off the steering wheel, weaving through lanes, or reacting too slowly while driving.
Depending on the severity of the distraction level, the car will first warn the driver, then call a Volvo support center, and then reduce the speed of the car. If the behavior continues, the car will pull over in a safe location and stop driving. A Volvo support call will alert any emergency responders or others as needed.
Volvo acknowledges some of these measures might seem extreme, but they could be what it takes to make driving safer. A distracted driver on a phone call, texting, or looking away is 29 times more likely to crash in a highway work zone, according to University of Missouri research released this month. But knowing that your car is watching you might be hard for drivers to accept, especially in this age of exploited privacy and personal data.
The safety feature will be available in all Volvo cars starting in 2020. A Volvo spokesperson said in an email statement that it's still being worked out how the cameras and monitoring systems will be installed in the cars. When asked if there'd be an option to turn off the cameras, the company said, "We aim to make driver monitoring systems standard when their full use in safety systems has been defined."
The spokesperson continued, "We want to start a conversation about whether car makers have the right or maybe even the obligation to install technology in cars that changes the drivers’ behavior. We know that intoxication and distraction is a complicated discussion, and we will not make any final decisions today.”
A less intrusive, and admittedly, useful tool coming in 2021 allows owners to set max speed limits for others using their vehicle. Called "Care Key," the speed cap could reduce dangerous driving for younger and inexperienced drivers, like when your teenager takes the car for the day.
Sasha is a news writer at Mashable's San Francisco office. She's an SF native who went to UC Davis and later received her master's from the UC Berkeley Graduate School of Journalism. She's been reporting out of her hometown over the years at Bay City News (news wire), SFGate (the San Francisco Chronicle website), and even made it out of California to write for the Chicago Tribune. She's been described as a bookworm and a gym rat.
