Intelligent Speed Assistance for motorcycles too?
Speed limiters for cars are on the cards – now they may be spreading to motorcycles
Intelligent Speed Assistance i.e your car slowing you down automatically if you are speeding, or in the UK telling you that you are speeding and warning you to slow down, is on its way. Up until now it was just proposed for cars, but now the idea has been mooted for motorbikes too.
This is all part of the EU road safety plan, which aims to halve the number of road deaths by 2030.
Elena Kountoura, a member of the European parliament, stated:
“For far too long, Europeans have had to live with an unacceptable death toll on our roads. It is realistic to aim to halve road deaths by 2030, if the EU and member states commit to better road safety, coupled with strong political will and sufficient funding...”
...And speed is believed to be one of the major killers on the road.
There are also new plans in Europe to make ABS, ISA and eCall systems mandatory on motorcycles, with periodic technical inspections (PTI) compulsory for all motorised two and three wheelers in Europe. At the current time though it is not clear how these proposals would apply to older motorcycles which could not be fitted with all of this technology.
The use of e-scooters is also under the microscope and the EU wants them to be subject to theory and practical tests just like motorcycles. So things are on the move, albeit slowly.
Slowly Does It
The idea of the proposed new ISA systems is that they activate automatically, once a bike has reached the designated speed limit for the road it rides on. The system then automatically reduces the motorcycle’s power output to keep the speed within the speed limit for that road. Once the ISA is activated you will still be able to override it and ride over the speed limit, but alarms will go off and continue going until you have slowed down to the appropriate speed limit. The speed limit for all areas in cities and residential areas is suggested to be a blanket 18.6 mph, although faster speeds may be allowed on busier roads. Stricter alcohol limits and a no tolerance policy are in the pipeline as well.
The Federation of European Motorcyclists Associations or FEMA is opposed to ISA’s though, saying that they don’t believe in measures which take away the control of the machine from the rider as they don’t consider it to be safe, in fact they maintain that it could be extremely dangerous.
Dolf Willigers FEMA General Secretary, said:
“We do not support any technical features that take away the control of the motorcycle from the rider and therefore – although we understand the need to reduce speed in certain situations – we see any kind of Intelligent Speed Assistance that interferes with engine control as a danger for motorcyclists, as we have already discussed with the European Commission in 2019. The Commission agreed with us that you cannot just fit ISA on motorcycles.”
Obviously the UK is no longer subject to EU laws, but it may be that the UK will follow the EU lead and end up discussing these measures with a view to bringing them in sometime in the not too distant future.
What do you think about this controversial idea, do you fancy your speed being controlled by an ISA for your own safety, or do you prefer to be captain of your own ship? Let us know at
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