New technology from Volvo alerts drivers to an accident on the road ahead

With the new Traffic Alert system, another feature of Volvo's Connected Safety system, for the first time ever, a car can warn you of fresh accidents on the road in front of you with real-time information from the Traffic Dispatch Centre. The system will be available in compatible Volvo cars in Europe starting in Denmark.

Cooperation with authorities

With its goal of helping drivers avoid collisions and traffic jams caused by accidents on the road ahead, the feature is designed to instantly alert drivers to a traffic accident within a range of up to several hundred metres. Location data will be provided by national traffic authorities and compatible vehicles, starting with Volvo cars (the date of availability of this system in the Czech Republic has not yet been set).

"Our accident alert system, using ground-breaking connected safety technology, can help Volvo drivers avoid unpleasant surprises while making the road safer for everyone," says Åsa Haglund, Director of Volvo Cars Safety Centre. "This new system, which we have developed in collaboration with the Danish Road Directorate and other partners as part of the Data for Road Safety initiative, further strengthens our leadership in safety innovation," she adds.

The Connected Safety System, which Volvo claimed an industry-leading position with its introduction in 2016, uses real-time traffic information transmitted via the cloud. It is a technology that enables Volvo cars to communicate with each other, allowing them to alert their drivers to approaching slippery roads and trigger warning lights on vehicles on the road ahead. Now, regardless of the time of day, drivers can also be alerted to accidents on the road ahead.

In the future, Volvo plans to integrate additional road traffic data shared with partners in the European Data for Road Safety ecosystem, including data from national traffic management centres in other countries and from other brands.

Connecting other car companies

To make roads safer for everyone, the carmaker is calling on other road safety authorities to share anonymous accident data, while encouraging other carmakers to join Volvo in offering similar technology. Needless to say, Volvo Cars has committed to sharing the data of connected safety technology with others so that they can integrate it into their safety features, and will continue to do so.

"We are delighted that Volvo Cars is the first car manufacturer to start using our real-time traffic event data feed," says Stine Bendsen, Head of the Traffic Management Centre at the Danish Road Directorate. "Early warning of an accident on the route gives drivers more time to slow down and increase their distance from the vehicle in front. This helps reduce the risk of subsequent collisions and protects those working to recover from the accident," he adds.

Volvo owners can easily contribute to safer roads by choosing to share data about their car: simply activate the 'connected safety' option on their car's central display. The car will then be able to alert the driver via the dashboard lights and possibly the head-up display to an accident ahead. Representatives of the carmaker assure that only basic data will be shared with others, and the data will be anonymised to ensure your privacy is protected.

Collision Alert is currently available in Denmark for all Volvo 90, 60 and 40 series cars from model year MY16 onwards. For these models, it will soon be available in other European market countries as well.

Source: VCCR