ELECTRIC CARS WILL HAVE TO MAKE NOISE FROM 2021

It is well known to all that one of the greatest advantages of the increasingly popular electric cars  (apart from their indisputable ecological improvement over their predecessors) is that they do not produce that annoying noise pollution that their peers carry with them by default. That may seem like an advantage at first glance, but surely it has happened to all of us at some point that we come across an electric or hybrid car without really knowing where it came from because we were distracted and we didn't hear it. This is because many pedestrians are guided largely by hearing when crossing streets or performing similar actions. Studies affirm that, if in a dangerous situation due to the stealth of these vehicles, a pedestrian usually has a second and a half to save yourself from being run over if one of these cars approaches 30 km/h (average speed in urban areas).

For this reason, with the intention of avoiding future accidents, the European Union has ruled that, starting in July 2021, this type of vehicle must incorporate a Acoustic warning that alerts pedestrians to your presence.

Nissan and Jaguar, the first to put it in the catalog

These two well-known brands, which already have a certain background in the manufacture of electric and hybrid vehicles, have been the first to add an acoustic warning in their cars, naming it AVAS (Audible Vehicle Alert System, for its translation Audible Vehicle Alert System). Nissan states that the system has been created taking into account the urban environment in which cars usually move, so it will be audible without causing inconvenience to pedestrians. In addition, its tone and frequency will vary depending on the action the car performs, rising or falling as the car accelerates, decelerates or reverses.

This measure has been promoted by associations such as Euroblind, and the European Union has decided to adopt it, establishing that, at a speed of 20 km/h, electric vehicles sold from 2021 onwards will have to emit frequencies of between 56 and 75 decibels.

Safety or comfort?

This topic has sparked some debate among urbanites. Certainly, a silent city (or at least without the persistent noise of traffic) is the dream of any average neighbor and, surely, also of many pedestrians. Especially in densely populated cities, car noise has become a persistent problem. It is undeniable, however, that something like this would pose a risk to the road safety of blind people or people with vision problems and also to adults and children, who perhaps would not react in time without an auditory stimulus that warns them of the danger.