POTENTIAL EFFECTIVENESS OF ELECTRONIC STABILITY PROGRAMS (ESP) - WHAT EUROPEAN FIELD STUDIES TELL US

Abstract

ESP (Electronic Stability Programme) systems enable the stability of a car to be maintained during critical manoeuvres and to correct potential understeering or oversteering. As a result, ESP could help improve car safety by avoiding loss of vehicle control accidents as well as by reducing their severity or consequences. This paper describes an evaluation of the potential effectiveness of ESP if it was installed more widely. It is based on data from the European Accident Causation Survey (or "EACS") which contains