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Pedestrian crash prevention systems offer hope, earn praise

Posted at 12:03 PM, Feb 21, 2019
and last updated 2019-02-21 14:09:10-05

COLORADO SPRINGS (KOAA/NBC News) – Pedestrian fatalities remain at an all time high, but technology could help change that troubling statistic.

As News5 Investigates’ Patrick Nelson reported earlier this month, the Colorado Springs Police Department investigated 13 fatal pedestrian crashes in 2018. Of those investigations, police found 11 of the pedestrians are at fault. But that doesn’t mean drivers – and their cars – can’t play a vital role.

The human toll of these crashes impacts emergency responders and their families. “It’s carnage. It’s the worst of the worst,” said Sergeant Jim Stinson of the Colorado Springs Police Department’s Major Accidents Unit. “Holding people’s bloody hands and telling people their children are dead. I mean these are the kind of things cops don’t like doing.”

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety’s latest tests on vehicles with automatic braking offer hope.

“These systems are always attentive, they are always looking for obstacles ahead including other vehicles or pedestrians,” says IIHS Manager of Active Safety Training David Aylor.

Aylor says nine out of 11 small SUVs recently tested earned an “Advanced” or “Superior” rating for pedestrian crash prevention.

“It will warn the driver and then apply the brakes to mitigate or avoid the crash with the pedestrian,” he explains.

The Honda CR-V, Subaru Forester, Toyota Rav4 and Volvo Xc40 earned superior ratings, while the most recent Chevy Equinox, Hyundai Kona, Kia Sportage, Mazda CX-5 and Nissan Rogue earned an advanced rating.

“We would like to see this technology on more vehicles and we would like to see it as standard equipment,” Aylor says.

How small SUVs rate in new pedestrian test
Vehicles rate as basic, advanced or superior, based on their ability to avoid or mitigate a crash with pedestrian dummies in three different test track scenarios run at different speeds.

Superior:

  • 2018-19 Honda CR-V
  • 2019 Subaru Forester
  • 2019 Toyota RAV4
  • 2019 Volvo XC40

Advanced:

  • 2019 Chevrolet Equinox
  • 2018-19 Hyundai Kona
  • 2019 Kia Sportage
  • 2018-19 Mazda CX-5
  • 2019 Nissan Rogue

Basic:

  • 2019 Mitsubishi Outlander

No credit:

  • 2018-19 BMW X1

Read more about the IIHS tests: http://bit.ly/2U3fx2U

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