How To Use Assisted Driving Technologies Safely To Avoid A New Haven Auto Accident

There is a whole lot of talk in the world about autonomous cars and how they will be the self-driving future that has only been talked about in science fiction movies. These cars do exist currently, but they are not widely available. What auto manufacturers have been slowly rolling out to new vehicles is assisted driving technologies. These tools, that are designed to help you avoid a New Haven auto accident, include things like lane assistance which aims to keep you in a lane and notify you when you’re drifting out of the lane.

Most new cars come equipped with some level of this technology these days and it has fancy names like AutoPilot or BlueCruise, but they all do mostly the same thing. When you are driving your vehicle may notify you that you are drifting out of a lane or it may even help you stay centered in a lane of traffic. Other technologies are also helping drivers maintain a safe distance from the car in front of them, even in cruise control. These technologies are designed to, as the name suggests, assist in the safe operation of a car.

While these tools are intended to help you drive safely, they are not a replacement for you and your attention that must be paid to the road in front of you. The name suggests assistance, not a takeover of the driving. It is for this reason that you need to have a good understanding of what the technology is in your vehicle and how it functions. While fancy names and flashy marketing may give you the impression that there is no need for you to even be involved in the driving of the vehicle, the truth remains that most of these technologies do not offer autonomous driving and should not be used in that way.

So, you will need to learn how to coexist with assisted driving technologies so you can keep yourself and others you are riding in your car with safe. If you can lean on these assistive technologies while still maintaining control over your vehicle you will be putting yourself in a good position to maintain the safety of all who you are sharing the road with. Some of the things you can do to put these technologies safely to work for you include the following;

1.) Understand their limitations. Depending on the make and model of your vehicle the technology that exists may have limitations. Even if you see a commercial for your car on TV that is showing the technology being used one way, you should have a conversation with the dealership and take a look at the manual so you know exactly how the system functions and what purpose it serves so you don’t assume something that won’t happen and can leave you in a bad situation.

2.) Avoid distractions. Once again it is very important that you always stay engaged with the road in front of you. These are not true autonomous vehicles and therefore they should be treated as a regular vehicle that has a couple of tools that can help you stay safe. You are not a passenger in these vehicles you are still a driver and you should act that way. Distractions like cell phones and eating or drinking can still play a pivotal role in whether or not you are going to maintain your safety.

3.) Follow traffic laws. Whether you’re using assisted driving technologies or not you should be following the rules of the road. Having help driving does not give you a green light to ignore certain rules of the road and it certainly won’t be something you will want to say if you get pulled over by an officer that you were relying on assisted driving technologies and that’s why you weren’t following the rules of the road. This would not go over well with an officer of the law.

It is also important to remember when you are using these tools that they are all mainly run on software these days and keeping the software in the vehicle up to date can help make sure that the technology is working to the best of its ability. If you do not update the software you may be susceptible to glitches in the system that could possibly lead to a New Haven auto accident even if you do all of the other things correctly. You should always make sure you are updating the software in your vehicle in a timely fashion.

While assisted driving technologies can be a great help to you in keeping you safe, there are always accidents that happen. If you get injured in an accident or experience property damage you may need to speak with an experienced attorney. Contact our office and one of our experienced attorneys can review your situation and work with you to protect your long-term interests.