- Reckless drivers may be required to use speed limitation technology in their vehicles under a new law in Virginia.
- Similar bills have been tabled in half a dozen other states.
- Supporters say that technology can prevent deaths and injuries by forcing drivers to slow down.
Last month, a driver who had collected nearly 100 traffic offenses in the previous two years killed a mother and two of her children while they were walking in their Brooklyn district. Among the driver’s violations were 18 speeding offenses in a school area. The suspended driving license did not prevent it from would have Drive more than double the speed limit displayed on the Ocean Parkway section where the accident occurred.
Incidents like those, which lead to thousands of deaths a year in the United States, require new ways to reintegrate among the most daring drivers, according to some legislators.
Virginia has recently become the first state to officially approve the use of speed limitation technology as a means of limiting damage caused by the most reckless drivers. The law, sponsored by the Democratic State del. Patrick Hope and signed by Republican Governor Glenn Youngkin, gives judges the possibility of demanding devices that limit the speed of vehicles during the distribution of sanctions for reckless drivers. Hope says he sees the devices, also called speed governors or aid systems for smart speed, as an alternative to prison sentence or license suspension for recurrences. In most places in the United States, people have to go to work, take their children to school, buy races or participate otherwise in society, says Hope. A few The research suggests These 75% of people whose licenses are suspended continue to drive anyway.
Virginie was preceded by Washington, DC, who adopted a law Last year, the creation of an intelligent speed assistance program for drivers faced with a license suspension. Delinquents are required to pay so that the devices are installed, but under DC law, poor drivers can charge the system by the district. Virginia’s law includes a similar provision. Georgia legislature has also adopted an invoice Create a similar program a few days after the promulgation of the Virginia law; He is now awaiting the approval of the governor. Other bills have been tabled in Washington, Maryland, Arizona, California and New York. The bills were sponsored by Republicans as well as Democrats.
“It is a question of bringing the drivers to change their behavior. It is not really focused on the punishment of people, “explains Emily Gallagher, a democratic member of the New York State assembly representing Brooklyn parties, which sponsored a version of the bill. “We are not used to it. We are much more used to a prison system, but it is a change in behavior. ”
There is different types smart speed assistance systems. Some define a maximum speed for vehicles and are already in great use In commercial and truckle fleets. Others automatically send drivers a warning when they exceed the speed limit displayed in a given area, using GPS technology; the European Union implemented a rule Last summer, demanding that all new cars include such systems. A third type of system prevents drivers from exceeding the speed limit of a defined amount.
Hope, the delegate of Virginie, tests a car equipped with this last system, which prevented it from exceeding the displayed speed limits of more than 9 MPH. He said he was precisely calibrated to change the speed limits and not interfere with his ability to move freely through the roads. Drivers can also temporarily replace the system if they have to speed up to merge on a highway. If anything, says Hope, being able to exceed the speed limit of 9 MPH was “probably too fast”. Youngkin made some modifications before signing the invoice: eliminating a provision forcing drivers to use the devices if they have been spent by 100 mi / h. But overall, the bill was well received in the Legislative Assembly and was adopted with bipartite support, says Hope.
“I am delighted that Virginia is the first state to implement this. It was nice to see this concept starting to make snowball and catching up, “he says.
The bill allows the courts to demand that people convicted for reckless driving to register for a intelligent speed aid program, be created by the State, for a period of two to six months. The obligation will be at the discretion of the courts. The bill came into force on July 1, 2026.
Traffic deaths increased during the pandemic after several decades of decline. Pedestrian deaths struck a 40 years old In 2022. Part of the reason of the peak, the researchers said, was that fewer people were on the roads, which facilitates the speed of the drivers. Some researchers began to supervise the deaths of traffic in Public health termsDescribing the kinetic energy of speeding as a pathogen released with fatal results when they collide with other vehicles or people. While most traffic deaths even occur without Drivers exceeding the speed limit, the laws that target the worst speed for speeding reflect an increasing recognition that the speed itself is dangerous, explains Seth Lajeunesse, researcher of the Road Safety Research Center of the Northern Carolina University.
“From a philosophical perspective, this is a big problem,” explains Lajeunesse. “It seems to me a first step, and that it will progress. Virginia’s model seems to be something that most people in the public would take. ”
Virginia’s bill, as well as those introduced in other states, have been supported by families for Safe Streets, a national network of defenders who pressure for lower speed limits, safer road design and speed limitation technology. Amy Cohen, the president of the group, founded the network after her 12 -year -old son Sammy was struck By a van and killed in front of their apartment building in New York in 2013. The movement for safer streets and intelligent speed assistance systems is modeled after mothers against the driving movement in state of drunkenness, which began by targeting the worst offenders. The ignition locks, which use blood pressure to prevent people from starting a car when their blood alcohol level reaches a certain threshold, are now largely mandated for drivers who receive several dui. Cohen and the families for the safe streets are pressure for New York to adopt the draft law on speed governors since its first introduction to the Legislative Assembly in 2023, and hope that Virginia’s law will take momentum for similar policies in other states.
“We know that if a driver goes more slowly, he is more likely to have a better field of vision and more time to stop, and if he strikes someone, he is less likely to be fatal,” explains Cohen. “A year after my son was struck in front of my house, a 5 -year -old boy was struck in the same place. This driver was a few kilometers from the hour more slowly and this boy lived and mine did not do it. It is literally the difference between life and death. ”