Japan will require all new automatic passenger cars to be equipped with technology that prevents drivers from unintentionally accelerating by pressing the gas pedal instead of braking, according to the transport ministry.
As the country faces a rapidly ageing population, it is hoped the new rule will help reduce road accidents, often committed by older drivers, in line with new UN regulations due to come into force next June.
“Japan has been proposing to make it an international standard since 2022,” Transport Minister Tetsuo Saito said at a press conference in late June.
A photo taken in December 2018 in Nagakute, Aichi Prefecture, shows a device by Toyota Motor Corp. designed to prevent accidents caused by improper use of pedals. (Kyodo)
“We will prepare for the new regulations and work to improve the safety of cars,” he said, without specifying the exact timetable for the introduction of this requirement.
The technology will suppress acceleration, meaning that even if the driver presses the accelerator pedal fully 1 to 1.5 meters from a large object, the car will stop before hitting it or slow down to less than 8 kilometers per hour if a collision is unavoidable.
When the technology is activated, an onboard screen will also display a warning, such as “Release the accelerator pedal,” according to the ministry.
The ministry will revise its orders after UN regulations are formally approved in November this year, requiring new automatic models to first install the technology before extending it to new cars for existing models.
Manual transmission cars are exempt from the new rule because they are less likely to cause accidents resulting from pressing the wrong pedal, the ministry said.
Most new cars in Japan already come equipped with similar technology, and some automakers also sell products that can be retrofitted to existing cars.
According to the Traffic Accident Data Analysis and Research Institute, Japan recorded 3,110 traffic accidents caused by drivers mistaking the accelerator pedal for the brake pedal in 2023, resulting in 38 deaths and 4,343 injuries.
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