Speed limiters are already mandatory for some vehicles in the UK including buses, minibuses, limos and some HGVs.
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00:00It's really important for drivers to understand this change that's coming in.
00:05The technology won't apply the brakes.
00:06What it will do is it will gradually ease off the accelerator effectively, reduce engine
00:12power in a petrol or diesel car, reduce motor power in an electric vehicle to bring you
00:17back down to within that speed limit again.
00:19But like I said, it doesn't cause the brakes to be applied, but I think it's still an important
00:23piece of new technology that every driver needs to be aware of.
00:26Every vehicle manufacturer does things slightly differently.
00:28Some big manufacturers have actually already introduced the system into their cars and
00:33have sold them in the UK for a number of years, so some people might be familiar with it.
00:36There are usually fairly easy ways of switching it off if you want to, but it will only be
00:41temporarily switched off.
00:44Every time you start the car again, the system will kick in again, and that's because the
00:48people behind this move, which is basically the European Union and a lot of road safety
00:52bodies right across Europe, want to encourage drivers to keep within the limit as far as
00:56possible to reduce road deaths across the continent.
00:59That's the same here in the UK as well.
01:01Us here at the RAC, certainly not standing in the way of this new technology, I think
01:05it can deliver some real benefits to drivers and road users as well.
01:09There are other elements, what was important to realise, if drivers with cars fitted with
01:14these systems need to accelerate briefly for a short time, for instance, perhaps to move
01:19out the way of a hazard that's in front of them, by pushing hard on the accelerator,
01:24you will be able to momentarily switch it off, but again, only for a very short period,
01:29then the intelligent speed assistance system will once again kick in, and again, will start
01:34to make sure that people stick within the limit again.
01:36I think the really important thing for drivers to remember as well is that speed limits are
01:39there for a reason.
01:40They are limits.
01:41They're not targets.
01:42They are the maximum speed any of us should be driving, and in many cases, there's probably
01:48very few, if any good reasons why drivers might be exceeding limits in the first place.
01:53This new technology will just be that extra nudge that perhaps some of us need to remember
01:57what the limit is and to stick within it.