HASIn the middle of summer, the new European car safety regulations began to come into force with great indifference, like all these technical measures that seem obvious. After all, improving road safety is a fairly agreed cause – nobody wants to kill, or die, in a road accident – and strengthening vehicles through innovation is a means that escapes any form of debate or discussion. However, behind apparently painless measures lies a whole political thoughtlessness: that of a certain relationship with technology, invested with all kinds of powers and seen as the only provider of solutions to every problem, including those for which it is responsible.
These new automotive regulations are a case in point. From 7 July, any (new) four-wheeled vehicle marketed in the European Union must be equipped with a multitude of electronic systems and sensors that enable lane-keeping assistance, autonomous emergency braking, “intelligent” speed adaptation, alerts in case of driver distraction or drowsiness, detection of obstacles at the rear of the vehicle, etc.
Cars and trucks will also have to pass new, more demanding crash tests, which will make them mechanically heavier, notes UFC-Que Choisir. It is impossible to predict the impact that these measures will have on accidents, but it is certain that they will not only contribute to increasing the amount of energy needed to run our cars, but also to worsening their environmental footprint, with more electronics and more screens on board, therefore requiring more water and energy for their manufacture, more metals, rare earths, plastics, etc. The extent of the benefits is uncertain, the disadvantages are assured.
Technical reductionism
Here we come across the most comical paradox in the development of European public policies, each of which seems to have its own rudder. While on one floor of the Berlaymont we pedal hard to go north, on the floor below we manoeuvre fiercely to head south (hence the crucial importance of the spokespersons of the Commission, whose task is then to produce statements capable of convincing us that the north and the south are actually going, more or less, in the same direction).
The European Union has thus set itself targets to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by at least 55% by 2030, but at the same time is forcing its car industry to increase the environmental and climatic footprint of its cars. We will reply that the current movement, strongly promoted by the EU, is towards the electrification of the fleet. Yes. But energy from renewable sources or nuclear power plants is not inexhaustible: major efforts at sobriety will be necessary in all sectors if we want to do without fossil fuels. Thus, in all sectors except the automobile sector, let us note in passing that a small Renault Zoe or a Peugeot 208 electric weighs 1.5 tonnes, i.e. about three times more than a 2CV.
You have 43.86% of this article left to read. The rest is reserved for subscribers.
