U.S. Mandates Rearview Cameras

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has issued final standards that will require all new cars, buses and trucks weighing less than 10,000 lbs to be fitted with standard backup cameras by May 2018.

The rule requires carmakers to equip at least 10% of their vehicles with the technology before May 2017, increasing to 40% no later than May 2018 and to 100% thereafter.

The standard says the systems must be able to display an area at least 10 feet wide and 20 feet deep from the rear bumper. Other parts of the regulation dictate minimum image size, response time, durability and deactivation protocol. NHTSA says not all current rearview cameras are expected to meet the new requirements.

The technology will cost about $45 for vehicles already equipped with a suitable display screen and $142 for those that must add one specifically for the camera system, according to the agency.

Carmakers have supported the ruling through the Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers. AAM estimates that 60% of the 50 top-selling models in the U.S. already offer backup cameras as standard or optional equipment.

An average of 210 people 31% of them under 5 years old and 26% of them over 70 are killed in the U.S. each year in back-over accidents involving light-duty vehicles, according to NHTSA. The agency calculates between 58 and 69 lives will be saved annually once the entire U.S. vehicle fleet is equipped with the camera systems.