New Volvo tech tells you there’s been a crash ahead

Volvo is rolling out new technology that will tell you if there is an accident ahead, enabling you to avoid the area or respond accordingly.

To be introduced in Denmark, ‘Accident Ahead Alert’ is a connected-car cloud-based technology where the driver is informed of various types of incidents – using real-time data from a traffic management centre.

It appears to use – or function similarly to – Car-to-X technology rolled out across Europe in recent years, and fitted to vehicles such as the VW Golf, which allows cars to share data with each other, as well as the road network, where compatible.

Volvo says the warnings can reach the vehicle up to hundreds of metres ahead of the incident, and claims it can help reduce congestion by allowing the driver to change course.

The Safety Related Traffic Messages sent to the driver may include unprotected accident areas, obstacles such as debris and animals, temporary slippery roads reduced visibility and an unmanaged blockage of a road.

The information for the alerts is sourced by national road authorities – with bodies in the UK, Germany, Finland, Austria and other European countries engaged with the system – combined with data from other connected cars in the area.

Similar crash warning features are also built into the navigation app Waze, which is based on reports from users, rather than data from a central location.

“We call for more road authorities to share anonymous traffic accident data and encourage other car makers to join us in offering similar technologies,” a media statement from Volvo said.

Accident Ahead Alert works with compatible Volvo cars – it introduced its cloud-based connected car technology in 2016 on new-generation 90, 60 and 40-series vehicles – with no additional cost to activate the feature.

There’s no time frame yet on when the technology may be available in Australia, however Volvo plans for Accident Ahead Alert to spread from Denmark across Europe.

The Swedish car maker has worked with the Danish Road Directorate to introduce the system and sees its cars become part of the Data for Road Safety ‘ecosystem’.

Formed in 2017, Data for Road Safety (DFRS) is a European organisation which claims to provide ‘live vehicle, crowd and infrastructure data improving road safety across Europe’.

Acting as a traffic management centre, it provides the Safety Related Traffic Messages to the driver of the Volvo.

The alerts are formulated after sharing information between public national road bodies and private organisations/vehicles, with the intention of greater data reliability and effectiveness contributing to improved road safety.

Volvo is one of several car companies working with the DFRS, joining BMW, Ford, Mercedes-Benz and Volkswagen.