Letters: Concerns about automatic braking
Long Islanders registered 3 percent more new cars and trucks in September than a year earlier, a new report shows. Credit: iStock
The Newsday editorial on automatic braking systems is close to being correct [“Automatic braking will save lives. So why the delay?” March 1].
However, these systems are definitely not ready for full braking of a vehicle. I base this statement on experience with my 2016 vehicle. This vehicle has lane warnings and collision monitoring, which I find very useful.
The brakes will engage and drop my speed by 5 mph when a collision condition is sensed. The braking system also causes the vehicle to drop out of cruise control. These I find also very helpful.
The problem is the false alarms that cause the collision system to engage when there is nothing there. Right now, it’s just a minor inconvenience, but if full braking were to be implemented while moving at a high speed, a major accident could occur.
All vehicles should have these devices as warnings, but not as alternatives to the drivers’ observations. Hopefully the glitches can be remedied.
Dom Gervasi
Wantagh
Your editorial about automatic braking systems illustrates liberal thinking, which prefers governmental dictates over individual choice.
Of course, the more accident prevention technology we have in cars, the safer we’ll be. The question is, how will it be paid for? At what price will people be forced to choose between buying a car — which for many is a necessity — and not buying one, because regulations have driven the price through the roof?
Of course, Newsday’s editorial board is calling for automakers to be forced by the government to make these innovations standard as quickly as possible. Yet Newsday also acknowledges that this technology is an option on many cars. Shouldn’t the individual car buyer decide how much he or she wants to spend on safety technology?
Arthur Wellikoff, Malverne
