Hands off the wheel, eyes on the road
An important boost for Ford: it is allowed to offer its BlueCruise system in the United Kingdom. This allows the Ford Mustang Mach-E to drive independently on highways.
UK drivers can drive semi-autonomously (Level 2) with Ford BlueCruise. Ford has received permission from the United Kingdom to offer the service. This makes it possible for owners of a model year 2023 Ford Mustang Mach-E to hand over the wheel on British motorways.
Unlike the (also in the Netherlands) already widely available driver assistance systems where the car steers but you still have to keep one hand on the wheel, with BlueCruise you can let go of the steering wheel completely. However, the car uses an infrared camera to monitor whether you keep your eyes on the road and a warning follows if you do not. If you keep looking away, the car will brake after a few audible warnings while continuing to steer itself. BlueCruise only works on approved highways (3,700 km in the United Kingdom) and the driver receives a signal in the instrument panel when it is available. A little before leaving a BlueCruise zone, another warning follows and you have to take the wheel again.
The system will be available via an over-the-air update for the aforementioned Mustangs Mach-E and is initially free of charge, but after 90 days it will change to a monthly subscription at £18 per month. Ford says it expects that BlueCruise will eventually be allowed in more European countries and will be available in more models.
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– Thanks for information from Autoweek.nl