VANESSA WOODARD
Professor; Rachel Gruskin
Research and Writing
November 08, 2017
Should cars and trucks be required to use back-up cameras?
In recent times, road accidents have been recognized as the major cause of deaths and injury basically in all countries of the world (Jacobs, Aeron-Thomas & Astrop, 2000). The World Health Organization estimates that approximately 1.25 million people lose their lives as a result of road accident injuries globally. Research has shown that most of those affected by these accidents are the ‘susceptible road users’ like cyclists, motorcyclists, and pedestrians. These accidents have caused massive loss to the families of those affected and to their countries as a whole. Loss of man power in a country leads to major economic losses as well as a reduction in the productivity of their domestic products. As a result of these occurrences, various steps have been taken to curb road accidents, among them the introduction of back-up cameras in cars and trucks.
Back-up or rear-view cameras are tiny cameras attached to the rear of a car or truck. These cameras cover a broad area of proximity. The invention of these cameras began in the mid-19th century during the Motorama show in Detroit when Buick introduced the Centurion car. This car had a television camera attached to its rear that dispatched information of the traffic to the driver. The camera transmitted its images to a television screen placed on the dashboard in the car. Sadly, the car did not make it to the production stage. However, this discovery has led to better and more efficient versions of the rear camera in recent times. These cameras are becoming an essential part of automobiles in the industry because of how they have reduced the occurrence of road accidents.
As previously stated, the economic losses associated with road accident injuries cannot be quantified. The families of those who are affected take time off from their jobs in order to take care of their loved ones, leaving the areas they were working on unattended. Numerous people who have been victims of road accidents have lost their jobs as employers are not able to wait until they are fully recovered. In turn, it takes longer for those who were disabled in the process to find jobs and supplement their livelihood. This leads to fewer profit margins realized in various domestic sectors and therefore cripples the economic stability of a country. Due to the increase in back over accidents that were mostly as a result of car reversals, several countries have embraced the use of back-up cameras in cars and trucks. This has greatly reduced the manifestation of minor accidents, saving the lives of many people and the economy of a country as well.
Even though some victims of road accidents recover fully, most of them may suffer permanent disability. Traffic injuries, therefore, have long –term effects on victims socially (Jacobs, Aeron-Thomas & Strop, 2000). The consequences of road accidents to survivors are numerous, some of them including legal ramifications, home and vehicle transformations, economic anxiety and psychological trauma. Some of the legal implications of car accidents are found in the Car Accident Laws whereby whoever is responsible for the loss of life or damage to property resulting from the traffic collision is identified. Once the verdict has been established, the person may be subjected to compensation for the lost property, medical expenses of the other party affected, lost wages and much more. If the victim cannot fully recover from the accident, several home transformations may be made in order to make the house comfortable and easily accessible. Psychological trauma may be inevitable in cases where the accidents are fatal. This increases the need to make back-up cameras compulsory in cars and trucks.
Needless to say, car and truck accidents have a major impact on the environment. When accidents occur, harmful gases and fluids are emitted into the atmosphere. These gases may be poisonous to the flora and fauna. Many diseases have come up as a result of harmful gases that are inhaled from the air causing loss of lives and plants, even animals. Sometimes accidents occur in water bodies and there are large oil spills as a result. This contributes to the death of aquatic life as well. Another major impact on the environment is the affair on landfills. When accidents occur, most insurance companies find it easier to replace damaged vehicles than to repair them. The damaged vehicles are taken to dump sites where they may take years to decompose. This ruins the aesthetic value of the environment.
The abundant socio- economic strain experienced by countries as a result of car and truck accidents have led to politicians around the world to look for ways to curb this problem globally. This led to the adoption of the settlement ‘Improving global road safety’. This text encouraged member states to put strict legislations on perilous factors that make road accidents susceptible, especially those that affected vulnerable road users like pedestrians and cyclists. Over the last few years, there has been a reduction in the number of fatalities that result from road accidents due to cooperation from politicians in different countries. This has motivated many developing countries to double their efforts and make new initiatives to completely do away with road accidents. Some of these new initiatives would include the use of rear-view cameras in vehicles.
As seen, there are multiple ways in which car accidents affect the lives of many and nations as a whole. These forms may be economically due to the reduction of man-power brought about by the loss of lives, socially especially those that have close relations with the victims and have to change their lifestyles in order to accommodate the needs of the affected, environmentally as an aftereffect of harmful fumes and fuels that are emitted into the atmosphere or even politically as a result of burdened economies and loss of skilled and creative people. The effects of road accidents are endless and have crippled many thriving sectors in different countries. Many researchers have come up with various solutions, none of which has been extremely effective in stopping road accidents. Cars and trucks should be required to use back-up cameras to help the drivers to view the traffic before taking the course. This will greatly reduce the risk of both major and minor accidents in the world. In fact, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) noted that the installation of these back-up cameras in cars and trucks could result in a reduction of fatal accidents by 46 percent. These cameras have therefore become a necessary need.
References
Braid, D., Broggi, A., & Schmiedel, G. (2006). The TerraMax autonomous vehicle. Journal of Field Robotics, 23(9), 693-708.
Jacobs, G., Aeron-Thomas, A., & Astrop, A. (2000). Estimating global road fatalities.
McMahon, M. A., & Bingle, R. L. (2006). U.S. Patent No. 7,005,974. Washington, DC: U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. (2008). NHtSA. Traffic safety facts 2000: Pedestrians. (Report DOT HS 809311).
World Health Organization. (2009). Global status report on road safety: time for action. World Health Organization.
Bru8011w
20171107154050back_up_cameras3.docx
0
