Rear cross-traffic alert is the latest vehicle technology that is aimed at preventing parking lot accidents. It’s a system that can be found in newer models, as part of the blind-spot monitoring system, and it’s activated when a car is backing out of a parking space.
Automakers tout rear cross-traffic alert (RCTA) systems as a great solution to one common problem for American drivers – collisions occurring while a car is reversing out of a parking space. In the U.S., these types of accidents happen often, mostly because drivers tend to pull forward into parking spots, rather than backward, opposite of what drivers in most other countries do.
Standard Feature in New Vehicles
This habit that American drivers have leads to many accidents at parking lots, as they have to move backwards to get out of a parking space, which increases the risk of getting into a collision, because drivers have difficulties seeing what is going on behind their vehicles.
This is the reason why rear cross-traffic alert systems have become increasingly common in cars sold in the U.S. But, a new study now says that these systems are not as reliable as car makers claim they are, suggesting that they tend to fail quite often.
The AAA has conducted a survey to see how effective rear cross-traffic alert systems are, and found that their effectiveness varies greatly in real-world situations. The AAA analyzed how well RCTA systems work using several test vehicles, by positioning them between two SUVs, which were supposed to block the driver’s peripheral vision. The findings were published in a report that notes RCTA systems are not nearly sufficient effective in cases when a car is parked between two large vehicles.
Not Able to Detect Pedestrians, Motorcycles, Bicycles and Other Cars
The report states that RCTA systems failed to detect a passing motorcycle in 48 percent of the tests. In 40 percent of the cases, they didn’t detect a bicycle passing behind a test vehicle. Furthermore, they failed to detect another car passing in 30 percent of the time, and finally, they didn’t detect pedestrians in 60 percent of the tests, even though the report notes that not all systems are designed for this purpose.
AAA’s independent testing showed that rear cross traffic alert systems failed to work effectively in several test vehicles,” cautioned Megan McKernan, manager of the Automobile Club of Southern California’s Automotive Research Center. “It’s critical that drivers reverse slowly and use this technology as an aid to, not a substitute for, safe driving.”
The AAA survey shows that 76% of American drivers pull forward into a parking spot, increasing the risk of hitting a pedestrian or another vehicle when backing out of the spot. That’s why experts advise drivers to reverse into parking spots whenever possible, and try to rely on their driving skills when leaving a parking space, rather than counting on rear cross-traffic alert systems.