- The Guardian,
- Saturday January 20 2001
Twenty trial vehicles will be fitted with a system which has won praise on a prototype Ford Escort driven over thousands of rigidly monitored miles in the past three years.
The tests, which prevented the car from topping 30mph, 40mph and other limits, were "highly reliable" according to the Institute of Transport Studies at Leeds University, which has won funding for the expanded trials from the Department of Transport, Environment and the Regions.
"We've had two dozen people driving along a 40 mile route, including the A1M motorway," said Oliver Carsten, head of the project, which has also been demonstrated on the north circular road in London.
The system uses a computerised navigator linked to the car's electronic controls and a positioning satellite. Areas with speed restrictions are fed into the system to trigger action as soon as a limit is breached.
