U.S Demands That Electric Cars Make Noise At Low Speed

Electric cars can be deadly quiet when they move which can pose a threat to absent minded pedestrians or visually impaired pedestrians. This has made the U.S road safety body, The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has come up with a rule to change that. This new rule demands that electric cars must make a noise when travelling either forwards or backwards at speeds of less than 30 km/h (19 mph). and it covers vehicles with four wheels that weigh less than 10,000 pounds (4.5 tonnes).

The safety specification requires car makers to use a two-tone signal similar to that currently emitted by heavy vehicles when they are reversing. According to NHTSA, at higher speeds, tire and wind noise would be loud enough to alert people to the presence of a vehicle.

Car makers have until 1 September 2019 to make changes to ensure that all new vehicles are fitted with sound systems to generate the noise. while In Europe, car makers have until 1 July 2019 to fit all new models of hybrid and pure electric vehicles with its mandatory Acoustic Vehicle Alerting System (AVAS), while all existing models have another two years to have it installed.