Cruise Control; many say it reduces fatigue and increases fuel economy, BUT, how safe is cruise control? When it debuted some worried about being able to deactivate the feature; more recent studies have uncovered other possible dangers. Four scenarios were presented: 1-Approaching a toll booth. 2-Encountering consrtruction in the drivinfg lane. 3-Entering an area where speed is tracked by radar. 4-Encountering an 18 wheeler accident in the passing lane. 90 subjects went through these scenarios using cruise control, using a speed limiter and using neither device. Problems identified whern using cruise control or a speed limiter included, drivers staying in passing lanes longer because they had trouble monitoring their speed; cruiser control users tended to move back into slower traffic lanes without leaving a safe distasnce between their vehicle and the one they just passed; cruise ciontrol users didn’t correct their direction as often as other test subjects, leaving a greater chance of slipping into another lane or off the road; reaction time of drivers using cruise control was slowed by an average of 1 second; at 70mph that means a stopping distance of over 100ft.
Researchers say some of these problems are caused by a lack of attentiveness on the part of cruise control users.
