Latest column · August 2024
Intelligent Speed Adaptation (ISA)
And you thought that an ISA was a savings account... Not any more!
With the UK’s withdrawal from the European Union, legislation introduced in the European parliament is often overlooked here in Britain as either ‘irrelevant’ or of no interest to us. However, that doesn’t mean that the EU law has zero impact here in Britain. Take the introduction of ISA technology - which was introduced and enshrined in EU Law last month (July). Now to be clear, I’m not talking about your tax-free saving account ISA (Individual Savings Account) ... I am talking about another branch of “Big Brother” that is about to impact all drivers of new vehicles in the UK. Intelligent Speed Adaptation (ISA)
So, what is this non-financial ISA? Well, I guess it does what it said on the tin... It is a computer/A.I. controlled device that intelligently adapts the speed of a vehicle to adhere to local speed limits and conditions. It used GPS tracking, satellite navigation data and local speed limits to automatically reduce the speed of the vehicle and thereby meet the legal speed limits. The current regulations in Europe allows drivers to turn the speed limiter off. However, the ISA will be reset when you turn off the engine and will be enabled again when you switch the engine back on again, so the driver will have to actively turn it off at the start of every trip.
This is a new European Union law, Why should we care here in Britain? We aren’t obliged to adhere to European law any more. Indeed, the Department of Transport have already stated that new cars sold in the UK will not be affected for the foreseeable future. Well, that may be true, but most of the big vehicle manufacturers including Volvo, Renault, Honda & Ford, have revealed that they will be including the limiter in their vehicles sold in the UK. The RAC’s road safety spokesman said last week... “While it’s not currently mandated that cars sold in the UK have to be fitted with Intelligent Speed Assistance (ISA) systems, we’d be surprised if manufacturers deliberately excluded the feature from those they sell in the UK as it would add unnecessary cost to production”.
If you are intending to buy a new vehicle from July 2024, you would be well advised to familiarise yourself with ISA and how it works. Specifically, if you exceed the speed limit, an audible warning is sounded and then your car’s speed is automatically reduced. However, a driver can still override it by the press of a button on the dash.
OK! So keeping it in perspective... Firstly, there is no similar law being introduced in the UK at this time. But the ISA technology will be built into all new vehicles sold in the UK, if not immediately, then certainly in the coming year or two. Secondly: You can bet your bottom dollar that the UK’s new Transport Minister will certainly consider embracing the technology in order to cut road casualties. Third: You CAN turn off the ISA and decide yourself how fast you want to drive.
However, the deeper implications of this new “spy in the car” are quite profound. It won’t take too long before the ISA device is used by insurance companies to determine blame or culpability in an accident... Drivers have the ability to consciously turn off the speed limiter and exceed the speed limit in a particular area or on a particular stretch of road. If you are then involved in an accident and it is shown that you chose to turn off the speed limiter, not only will you be “guilty” of speeding; you may also find that your insurance has been invalidated by choosing to over-ride a road safety device.
What-ever the timescales on the introduction of ISA, you can rest assured that this European law will, at some point in the future, impact on our freedom to choose what pressure we put onto that accelerator pedal.
Happy motoring.
Mike Joenn, AJ Garage Services
