A common pattern in the industrial and postindustrial eras is that a new invention becomes commercially available, or else makes its debut at a public event with the promise of soon being available to consumers. The public marvels at this invention that performs a task that humans previously had to do with their own judgment or physical strength, and soon it seems like only fools and chumps would ever forgo this technological marvel. Just ask anyone without a dishwasher, a refrigerator, or a cell phone. Eventually, we start to ponder what we might be missing out on by letting machines live our lives for us.
Currently, this debate is raging about large language models and their ability to compose passable text about almost anything. Why write a work email when a chatbot can write it for you, and why read one when you can just ask a chatbot to summarize it? Wouldn’t that make every worker more efficient? Perhaps, but where is the romance when every affectionate text message from your sweetheart is the composition of a chatbot? Isn’t that a sweet algorithm instead of a sweetheart? A similar debate is going on about speed-limiting software in trucks and buses, the vehicles that cause the most damage if they speed. If you have been injured in an accident involving a speeding truck or bus, contact a Santa Fe motor vehicle accident lawyer.
Speed Kills, So Do Vehicles That Physically Can’t Speed Save Lives?
Excessive speed worsens the severity of a collision, regardless of the size of the vehicles involved. Large commercial vehicles, like trucks and buses, are inherently susceptible to catastrophic accidents because of their size. It stands to reason, then, that by limiting the speeds at which these wheeled behemoths can travel, we reduce the risk of fatalities. Lawmakers have been weighing this issue for over a decade, and in some cities, school buses and public buses cannot exceed a certain speed. Proponents of speed limiters argue that they make it easier for drivers to avoid collisions, and they prevent drivers from losing control of the vehicle if they get distracted momentarily and do not realize how much they are accelerating.
The Hidden Cost of Vehicles Incapable of Traveling at High Speeds
Meanwhile, critics of speed limiters highlight the dangers that can arise when a vehicle is programmed to poke along at moderate speed, even when traveling quickly would be safer. This is why speed limiters have come and gone from commercial trucks. Drivers complained that, when trucks were limited to 65 miles per hour, the trips took longer, since drivers could not drive at 70 miles per hour on stretches of highway with high speed limits when the traffic was light enough that they could safely do this. At low speeds, the trips took longer, leading to driver fatigue.
Contact Slate Stern About Truck Accidents Lawsuits
Slate Stern is a personal injury lawyer who represents plaintiffs injured in truck accidents in New Mexico. Contact Slate Stern in Santa Fe, New Mexico, or call (505)814-1517 to discuss your case.
Sources
https://stnonline.com/special-reports/not-so-fast-technology-eyes-speed-reduction-in-school-buses/
Photo by Marc Sendra Martorell on Unsplash