Are touchscreens in cars bad for safety?

Nowadays, most car manufacturers are equipping their cars with touchscreen infotainment systems. These screens do away with the physical buttons, such as to change tracks, play or pause, and increase or decrease the volume. Additionally, features like the air conditioner and the sunroof are also now touch controlled. If your car did not come factory fitter with the touchscreen, there are a plethora of aftermarket options available for you to choose from. 

Why are touchscreen bad?

The inherent problem with touch based systems is that it is distracting to use. To operate it, the driver needs to direct their attention towards the touch controls, and away from the road. This is a safety hazard, as the number one rule of driving is always keep your eyes on the road. Unlike physical buttons, where one becomes accustomed to their location over some time, touchscreens require you to look at the screen each time you want to conduct an operation. The user menus in these touchscreens also make some tasks take more than a click, increasing the time spent not looking at the road. 

Why are manufacturers installing more and more touch controlled systems?

With the sheer number of features that manufacturers are offering in modern vehicles, installing a button for each function is just not possible. There is not enough space within the dashboard to accommodate so many buttons, it would make it very cluttered, and finding the specific button for every feature would require the driver to take their eyes off the road. Additionally, it is cheaper for manufacturers to add the control of all the features of the vehicle into the touchscreen system. 

Vehicle laws about touchscreen systems around the world

The European New Car Assessment Program, or Euro NCAP, has recently announced that in order to procure a 5 star safety rating for their vehicles, manufacturers need to provide physical buttons, at least for basic features. According to some reports, car manufactures will be required to use physical buttons for five essential features: turn signals, surrounding the horn, emergency warning lights, windshield wiper operation, and any SOS auto-call functions. However, this will not be made mandatory, but, if car manufactures seek a perfect safety rating, failing to comply with these standards will result in them losing out the 5-star rating. There were no guidelines provided on infotainment systems or climate control functions, which are typically operated by touch controls in modern cars. 

What are customer demands around touch screen systems?

Adding touchscreens to vehicles gives it a modern and high tech look, something which is desired by consumers today. Customers are more inclined towards purchasing vehicles that are deemed more luxurious and feature rich, which is exactly what touch screen systems bring about. However, safety concerns associated with touch controls are rising exponentially, making the future implementation of these systems uncertain.