Volvo Makes Three Big Moves to Achieve Zero Fatalities by 2020
Volvo is one the most safety-focused car companies out there and it has just taken further steps to help not only drivers but the entire auto industry, too—emphasizing once again its bold vision of zero traffic fatalities in Volvo cars from 2020 and beyond.
In the first of three major announcements made today, Volvo is launching Project E.V.A. (Equal Vehicles for All), which highlights the fact that women are more likely to get injured in a car accident. Referencing crash test data it has collected for more than 40 years, the company deplores, among other things, that male crash test dummies remain the standard.
Volvo has created an open-access digital library to share its safety knowledge and urges other manufacturers and developers to use it in the interest of safer roads for all.
The second important announcement by Volvo is the launch of the Care Key, which will allow any Volvo customer to set a speed limit for themselves, their family members or their friends. It will come standard on all Volvo cars and crossovers from model year 2021.
This technology, which is similar to what Ford and General Motors currently offer, is particularly useful with younger and inexperienced drivers, such as teenagers who only just received their drivers’ licence.
The Care Key follows the decision by Volvo to limit the maximum speed on all its vehicles to 180 km/h beginning in 2020.
The deployment of in-car cameras and other devices designed to combat intoxication and distraction behind the wheel is the third key announcement made by Volvo today. These will allow the vehicle to intervene if a clearly intoxicated or distracted driver (head turned, eyes closed, abnormal behaviour, etc.) does not respond to warning signals and risks an accident involving serious injury or death.
For instance, a system could limit the car’s speed, alert the Volvo on Call assistance service and, as a final course of action, actively slow down and safely park the car.
The introduction of cameras on all Volvo models will start with the next generation of the brand’s scalable SPA2 vehicle platform in the early 2020s. However, it’s too early to know how many cameras will be installed and where exactly.
Volvo points out that more than 69,000 impaired driving incidents were reported by the police in 2017 and, according to Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) Canada, an average of four people are killed each day in crashes involving alcohol and/or drugs.