In today’s automotive industry, Advanced Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS) have emerged as powerful tools for not only advancing road safety but also significantly cutting down on automobile maintenance expenses. On a commercial level, these innovative systems are designed to significantly reduce the cost of fleet management by taking preventive measures against potential collisions on the road.
To get a bit of the technical terminology out of the way, it’ll be helpful to explain what collision avoidance systems are. Collision avoidance systems are revolutionary driver-assistance technologies that actively help drivers avoid potential collisions by providing warnings and assistance when needed.
But when and how exactly do these systems come into play? Imagine a fleet of delivery trucks navigating through a bustling city during peak hours. As we know, distracted driving is a leading cause of collisions, and there is only so much you can do to account for human error. As one of your drivers approaches an intersection, a pedestrian suddenly darts across the street, catching the driver off guard. What a collision avoidance system does is pick up on this potential collision-causing threat with a quicker reaction time than the driver, allowing it to either warn the driver or, if needed, take preliminary action in order to avoid the collision.
Modern ADAS technology, however, isn’t strictly limited to detecting potentially harmful pedestrian behavior. Through the integration of radar systems, lidar systems, and cutting-edge cameras, these systems have grown adept at scanning the ever-fluctuating and often hectic scene of a busy street to detect a wide range of possible road hazards such as forward collisions and lane departures.
The technology is astonishingly effective. As per the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS), vehicles equipped with forward collision warning systems experienced a 20% reduction in front-to-rear collisions that lead to injuries. Similarly, vehicles equipped with lane departure warnings experienced a remarkable 21% decrease in injury-causing lane departure collisions.
The financial advantages of ADAS and collision avoidance systems for businesses with fleets of any size are substantial. For fleet managers, car maintenance is a significant expense, and these systems can effectively alleviate the financial setback and logistical challenges that arise from accidents by helping prevent them altogether.
By averting collisions, you can not only save direct costs related to car repairs and replacement vehicles but also prevent other indirect but consequential losses. These losses can include the loss of important customers and the expenses incurred by administrative teams managing the aftermath of collisions, as well as the potential increase in insurance rates after a collision. Fewer collisions also means less personnel required to deal with the replacement and repairs of the damaged vehicles.
These systems also open another unexpected avenue of savings by conditioning drivers to adhere to safer, more cost-effective driving habits. As per a study conducted by the University of Missouri, vehicles equipped with collision avoidance systems displayed a substantial decrease in lane departure warnings over time. [In one case,] forward collision warnings also dropped by 57% just three weeks after these systems were implemented.
Another indirect benefit of ADAS and collision avoidance systems is improved fuel efficiency. Sudden braking and rapid acceleration, often prompted by perceived road hazards, not only endanger safety but also contribute to excessive fuel consumption. ADAS technology actively scans the road, alerting drivers about unsafe distances from other vehicles and enabling smoother, fuel-efficient braking techniques. These seemingly minor changes in driving habits can add up to a substantial decrease in fleet-wide fuel consumption when considered on a larger scale.
Finally, Advanced Driver-Assistance Systems help cultivate a culture of safe, cost-effective driving through the use of speed limit indicators. Contrary to an unfortunately common belief that speeding may save money by reducing travel time, it is actually less cost-effective as it can lead to increased operating expenses. Annually, over 42 million speeding tickets are issued by the police, averaging more than 112,000 per day. These tickets come at a significant cost, which can impact fleet budgets. Moreover, high-speed driving increases wear and tear on vehicles, which then need to be taken off the roster of a fleet’s viable vehicles and repaired.
Speed limit indicators help combat the problem of speeding by providing audio-visual cues to a speeding driver, who may be speeding not by conscious choice but by unconscious habit, as many do.
Embracing ADAS in your fleet empowers you to protect your assets, slash maintenance bills, and foster a culture of responsible driving.
In collaboration with STG digital marketing
