US safety agency to require automatic emergency braking on heavy trucks and buses

By MATTHEW DALY
Associated Press

WASHINGTON (AP) — The government’s traffic safety agency says it will require that heavy trucks and buses include potentially life-saving automatic emergency braking equipment within five years. Automatic braking systems in heavy vehicles would prevent nearly 20,000 crashes a year and save at least 155 lives, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said. Thursday’s announcement follows a similar plan announced last month for all new passenger cars and light trucks. The actions represent the traffic safety agency’s latest move toward regulating electronic systems that take on certain tasks that drivers themselves have typically done.