WILL HIGH-TECH SYSTEMS HELP DRIVERS AVOID CRASHES?

Someday, driving may be "hands off", "feet off", according to proponents of intelligent transportation systems, known as ITS. Computers and other sophisticated technologies will guide cars safely to their destinations ensuring that no one gets lost and that there are virtually no crashes. Critics, on the other hand, question if these safety systems will instead distract drivers or make them overconfident. Generally, these systems send out radar signals from an onboard transmitter. When the signal hits another vehicle, it's reflected back to a receiver and used by the system's computer to calculate speed and distance. If a vehicle is too close, the system alerts the drive with a tone or a flashing light. These types of collision avoidance systems may cut rear-end crashes by 50% and lane-change crashes by 20%. The idea of any ITS technology is to give drivers as much information as possible. The debate is whether drivers will want to use it.