The Unintended "Silent Hazard" of Electric Vehicles

The Unintended “Silent Hazard” of Electric Vehicles

As gas prices continue to rise, so has the demand for electric vehicles. And while electric and hybrid models certainly have economic and environmental advantages, some of these advantages also present unique challenges in a world built for and accustomed to fossil-fuel powered vehicles. For example, electric vehicles have the advantage of being a lot quieter in operation, reducing noise pollution along with other types of pollution. But with that noise advantage comes a disadvantage—namely, pedestrians and other road users who cannot hear a car approaching cannot avoid the potential danger the car poses to them. In fact, in a 2017 study, NHTSA reported that “hybrid-pedestrian collisions occurred around 1.2 times the rate of normal internal combustion engine vehicles.” The problem is particularly acute in low-speed situations and for pedestrians with visual impairments.

In response to this “silent” hazard, government regulators here and in several other countries require EV manufacturers to implement Acoustic Vehicle Alerting Systems (“AVAS”) or Pedestrian Warning Systems (“PWS”) on their vehicles. As implied in the name, these systems emit a sound warning to alert pedestrians of an approaching electric vehicle.

In the United States, NHTSA has mandated “Minimum Sound Requirements for Hybrid and Electric Vehicles” at 49 C.F.R. § 571.141 (eff. Aug. 28, 2020), pursuant to the Pedestrian Safety Enhancement Act of 2010 and Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) No. 141. The stated purpose of the standard is to “reduce the number of injuries that result from electric and hybrid vehicle crashes with pedestrians by providing a sound level and sound characteristics necessary for these vehicles to be detected and recognized by pedestrians.” Generally, all hybrid and electric vehicles are required to “emit sound at minimum levels while the vehicle is stationary (although not when the vehicle is parked, i.e., when the transmission is in ‘park’), while in reverse, and while the vehicle is in forward motion up to 30 km/h.” All hybrid and electric vehicles manufactured after March 1, 2021 must comply.

Always marching to its own beat—or in this case its own goat bleats, coconuts, and bodily functions—Tesla has been creative in executing NHTSA’s pedestrian warning system requirements. Partner Mike Nelson recently traded in his Tesla Model 3 for a new Model Y, and was surprised to suddenly hear spaceship-like sounds while backing up—it turned out to be Tesla’s Pedestrian Warning System in action. Hear it for yourself here:

Posted June 6, 2022

The opinions expressed in this blog are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Firm, its clients, or any of its or their respective affiliates. This blog post is for general information purposes and is not intended to be and should not be taken as legal advice.