EVs pose ‘very real safety risk’ to blind and low vision community

By Katie Todd of RNZ

• Blind and visually impaired people say silent electric cars pose a safety risk.
• They urge the Government to mandate noise-emitting devices on electric and hybrid vehicles.
• Advocacy groups report many incidents and near-misses and are pushing for legislative action.

Blind and visually impaired New Zealanders say electric cars that travel silently at low speeds are putting their lives on the line.

They want the Government to mandate noise-emitting devices on hybrid and electric cars before someone is badly hit or killed.

Martine Abel-Williamson, a blind Aucklander, said it had become more and more difficult to safely navigate her neighbourhood in recent years.

Nearly one in 10 light vehicles in New Zealand is now electric or hybrid, according to the Electric Vehicle Database.

“After years of being able to navigate traffic independently, you now kind of take your life in your hands and feel as if your life is beholden to the driver. Because they know you’re there – hopefully – but you don’t necessarily know they’re there. You can’t hear the vehicle whether it’s idling, stationary or driving,” she said.

Martine Abel-Williamson and her guide dogs. She has been struck twice by vehicles she couldn’t hear. Photo / RNZ

“With a guide dog or with a cane, the decision is still yours, as a person, to cross the road.”

Abel-Williamson, who is also president of the World Blind Union, has been struck twice by vehicles she couldn’t hear.

“I’ve been backed into ... and driven into from the front. Fortunately, it happened at slow speed, but it can happen,” she said.

Data from Blind Low Vision NZ suggests her experience is shared by other blind or visually impaired Kiwis.

It said nearly a third of members it surveyed had either been struck by or had a near-miss with an electric or hybrid car.

Some electric cars in New Zealand are already being imported with special noise-making devices called acoustic vehicle alerting systems (AVAS).

AVAS, which typically activate at low speeds, have become mandatory for cars in Japan, Europe and Australia.

As a result, the Ministry of Transport told RNZ electric vehicles being imported to New Zealand will increasingly be likely to have them – “without any regulatory decisions being needed”.

But so far, there’s no rule saying the devices have to remain fitted to cars as they’re imported, or that drivers can’t switch them off – or exactly how they should work, advocacy groups say.

Blind Low Vision New Zealand and Blind Citizens New Zealand have been jointly lobbying the Government to write the sound-emitting devices into law.

Nearly one in 10 light vehicles in New Zealand is now electric or hybrid. Photo / 123rf

Blind Citizens general manager of community and inclusion Dan Shepherd said the groups wanted the Government to understand “the very real safety risk to the blind and low vision community”.

“There is a solution and there are solutions internationally that we can follow and we are looking for government support to make our community safe,” he said.

Blind Citizens national president Jonathan Godfrey said 10 years of discussions with government officials had gone nowhere.

“The Government just needs to make sure that every new vehicle that is brought into the country is making enough noise that it can be heard. We have rules for what it must have on the vehicle with respect to its lights and its indicators ... it’s not a big ask,” he said.

Godfrey said it was imperative for the Government to act sooner rather than later – noting that electric engines were becoming increasingly common in buses and heavy vehicle fleets too.

“We certainly want to hear those trucks before we feel them,” he said.

He said blind and visually impaired New Zealanders were living in fear.

“Some blind people are actually choosing not to get out and about as much as they used to and they are crediting the silent vehicles as a reason for not walking, not getting the exercise they need, not enjoying the world as much as their sighted friends and family.”

In a statement, the Ministry of Transport said it was aware groups representing blind and visually impaired people were asking for hybrid and electric vehicles to be fitted with noise-making devices.

It said it was in contact with the groups and planned to meet them again to discuss the issue.

It said most imported vehicles would comply with UN standards for noise-making devices that prohibit pausing the AVAS system.

“Removing a fitted device would likely require modifying the vehicle’s original equipment or software, which could affect the terms and conditions of vehicle insurance.”

However, the Ministry of Transport acknowledged there were no requirements in New Zealand transport rules that AVAS remain fitted or turned on.

Transport Minister Chris Bishop was not available to be interviewed.

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