NHTSA Proposes Noisemaker Rule for EVs, Hybrids

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration estimates that about 2,800 pedestrian injuries in the U.S. would be avoided annually if electric cars and hybrids emitted artificial noise at speeds below 30 kph (18 mph).

NHTSA's proposal aims to require the noisemaking systems in all EVs and hybrids by about 2018. The agency estimates that compliance would cost about $30 per vehicle.

EVs and hybrids are almost impossible to hear during low-speed maneuvers such as parking, backing up or starting in traffic. An NHTSA analysis estimates that such vehicles are twice as likely as a conventional car to be involved in a collision with a pedestrian or bicyclist at low speeds. The problem disappears above 30 kph, when EVs and hybrids generate enough wind and tire noise to approximate the sound of an IC-powered vehicle.

The Pedestrian Safety Enhancement Act, which was signed into law two years ago, requires NHTSA to set an "alert-sound" standard that would enable a blind person to determine the presence, direction, location and operation of an electrified vehicle.

NHTSA hopes to finalize such a regulation covering electrified light vehicles, motorcycles, buses and medium- and heavy trucks by Jan. 4, 2014. The agency proposes a three-year phase-in period beginning on Sept. 1, 2015.