According to the “Headphone use and pedestrian injury and death in the United States: 2004–2011” study published in Injury Prevention, Richard Lichenstein et al provide alarming information about the dangers posed by silent electric cars. During the study period, 116 pedestrians wearing headphones were killed, with over half of them being hit by trains. Shockingly, 29% of these fatalities occurred even after an audible warning was given. This highlights the need to protect individuals who are deaf, hearing impaired, blind, or visually impaired from the risks of these quiet vehicles, as failure to sense approaching cars can have fatal consequences.
Various electric cars may not be completely silent while in motion, but compared to the noisy vehicles on our roads, they are significantly quieter. Recognizing this, lawmakers came up with a brilliant and life-saving solution: Just as natural gas is infused with a foul-smelling substance called mercaptan to quickly detect potential gas leaks, electric vehicles should be equipped with intentional sounds and sensors to make them more audible.
In response, the European Union implemented legislation in July 2019 to address this issue. Known as Uniform Provisions Concerning the Approval of Quiet Road Transport Vehicles with Regard to their Reduced Audibility, this regulation requires electric cars in the E.U. to have an Acoustic Vehicle Alert System. As reported by New Atlas, this system produces a continuous noise of at least 56 decibels when the vehicle is traveling at 20 km/h (12 mph) or slower.
