NHTSA allows automakers to use adaptive high-beam headlights in the U.S.

According to foreign media reports, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) said on February 15 that vehicles on American roads will be able to use an advanced headlight system called "adaptive high beam", which may help prevent nighttime traffic accidents.

(Image source: Toyota)

In 2013, Toyota applied to NHTSA for permission to use this lighting system, which can automatically adjust the light beam with additional sensors to provide better illumination without affecting oncoming drivers. The Alliance for Automotive Innovation, which represents almost all major automakers, said that studies have shown that such headlights "can improve road visibility without causing glare to oncoming drivers." After Toyota, Volkswagen and BMW also applied to use this lighting system on vehicles sold in the United States.

Unlike some automatic high and low beam switching systems, adaptive headlights can use sensors, cameras, data processing software and headlight hardware to detect oncoming vehicles and the car in front and automatically adjust the light beam. This lighting system has been used in Europe for more than ten years and is also allowed in Japan, Canada and other countries.

An infrastructure law signed last November requires NHTSA to issue a final rule by the end of 2023 to allow adaptive high-beam headlights. NHTSA said the new rule "will improve the safety of pedestrians and cyclists by making them more visible at night and prevent collisions by better illuminating animals and objects on the road."

Pedestrian deaths in the U.S. have risen 45% since 2010. In 2020, a total of 6,236 pedestrians were killed, about one in every six traffic accidents. According to NHTSA data, about 72% of pedestrian deaths and 51% of driver deaths occurred at night, while cars only travel 25% of their total miles at night.