SAN ANTONIO (Texas News Radio) — Too many drivers are relying too much on driver assistance technology.

New research from the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety found that a majority of drivers were unaware of these systems limitations.

In one case, researchers found that nearly 80 percent of drivers with blind spot monitoring systems were not aware of its limitations or believed it could accurately detect vehicles passing at high speeds.

However, the system only signals for vehicles in a blind spot and cannot reliably detect pedestrians or cyclists.

“When properly utilized, ADAS technologies have the potential to prevent 40 percent of all vehicle crashes and nearly 30 percent of traffic deaths. However, driver understanding and proper use is crucial in reaping the full safety benefits of these systems,” said Dr. David Yang, executive director of the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety. “Findings from this new research show that there is still a lot of work to be done in educating drivers about proper use of ADAS technologies and their limitations.”

The foundation commissioned researchers from the University of Iowa to conduct the study involving drivers who bought a 2016 or 2017 model year vehicle with these technologies.

The study also made the following findings:

• Nearly 40 percent of drivers were not aware of automatic emergency braking and forward collision warning limitations.  Those drivers incorrectly reported that forward collision warning could apply the brakes in the case of an emergency when the technology is only designed to deliver a warning signal.  Moreover, roughly one in six vehicle owners in the survey reported that they did not know whether or not their vehicle was equipped with automatic emergency braking.
• About 25 percent of drivers using blind spot monitoring or rear cross traffic alert systems report feeling comfortable relying solely on the systems and not performing visual checks or looking over their shoulder for oncoming traffic or pedestrians.
• About 25 percent of vehicle owners using forward collision warning or lane departure warning systems report feeling comfortable engaging in other tasks while driving.

“New vehicle safety technology is designed to make driving safer, but it does not replace the important role each of us plays behind the wheel,” Yang stated. “The prospect of self-driving cars is exciting, but we aren’t there yet.  Automakers have an ethical and important responsibility to accurately market, and to carefully educate consumers about the technologies we purchase in the vehicles we drive off the lot.”

While many drivers are unaware of the capabilities and limitations of these systems, the research said that when ADAS technologies are properly used, they could potentially prevent 2.7 million crashes, 1.1 million injuries and nearly 9,500 deaths each year.

About 70 percent of drivers recommend these technologies to others.  The greatest proportion of drivers reported trusting blind spot monitoring systems (84 percent), followed by rear-cross traffic alert (82 percent), lane departure warning (77 percent), lane keeping assist (73 percent), forward collision warning (69 percent) and automatic emergency braking (66 percent).

AAA says dealers and car companies need to do a better job of educating customers on how their technologies work and their potential limitations.

“Drivers need adequate training and effective educational resources that simply do not exist,” said Jake Nelson, AAA director of traffic safety advocacy and research. “AAA is sharing this new research with vehicle manufacturers and other stakeholders to help establish effective education tools that will benefit car buyers. If strong consumer education about vehicle technology was as much a priority as making the sale, we would all reap the benefits.”

The study found that only half of drivers were offered training in the technologies by their dealer, but when offered, about 90 percent took advantage of the opportunity.