Misuse of driver-assistance systems biggest risk to road safety, survey finds

MILAN/STOCKHOLM, July 15 (Reuters) - Motorists' misuse ‌of driver-assistance technology ​and ​drivers being distracted by in-vehicle features, rather than mechanical problems, are the biggest risks for road safety, according to a survey of transport ‌specialists.

The survey, published on Wednesday, reflects industry concerns about human error ⁠as some governments weigh tougher regulations for automated driving systems.

In the U.S., concerns have grown over features ‌offered by automakers, including Ford's ‌BlueCruise system and Tesla's Full Self-Driving, which is seeking approval for a Europe-wide rollout.

"We need to make sure that those systems are really explained to the ​end-user and proposed with a clear visibility of what they can do and what they cannot do," said Ignacio Alvarez, R&D Chief at Italian brake maker ⁠Brembo, which financed the survey.

The survey, conducted by Economist Enterprise, a division of The Economist Group, covered over ​1,000 transport specialists in policy, infrastructure, manufacturing and technology across car-producing countries France, Germany, Italy the UK, China, India, Brazil, Japan, South ​Korea and United States.

"The real risk is the ‌interface between humans and machines and increasingly automated systems," said Economist Enterprise research leader Pratima Singh.

Thirty percent of transport specialists surveyed ⁠cited human misunderstanding or misuse of driving assistance systems as the leading driver of mobility safety issues, while in a separate question on safety risks of user-vehicle interaction, 24% pointed ⁠to increasingly distracting in-vehicle features.

Two-thirds of professionals believed advertising overstated these systems' capabilities, "creating unrealistic expectations," Singh ​said.

In China, regulators are considering tighter oversight of advanced driver-assistance systems following a fatal crash involving a Xiaomi vehicle.

In Europe, a Swedish transport authority is recommending a vote against the Europe-wide rollout ‌of Tesla's supervised self-driving software, unless the U.S. EV maker disables its ability to exceed legal speed limits, a letter shows.

A ‌United Nations vehicle standards forum approved new rules for automated-driving systems last month.

The Economist ⁠Enterprise survey also polled over 5,000 ‌road-users, 88% of whom said ​they support tougher road-safety measures, suggesting backing for stricter regulation.

(Reporting by Giulio Piovaccari in Milan and Marie Mannes in Stockholm; Editing by ‌Susan Fenton)

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