NTSB Probes Ford's Blue Cruise After Deadly Crashes

0:00Federal investigators with the National Transportation Safety Board are diving back into Ford's blue crew system after two deadly crashes last year. That claimed three lives. These hands-free highway driving features led drivers dropped the wheel, but a Ford Mustang Mach-E plowed into stopped vehicles in Texas and Pennsylvania, sparking this pro-wrapping up Tuesday with safety upgrade recommendations. The Texas wreck hit on Interstate 10 in San Antonio around 9,500 PM, where the Mach-E rear ended a stopped Honda CR-V, killing the 56-year-old driver. Up in Philadelphia on Interstate 95 at 32am, March 3rd, another Mach-E slammed a disabled Hyundai after an earlier pile-up, striking two people. Outside their cars, both young men died. Automakers like Ford stressed these setups aren't full autopilot. Officers got to stay alert and ready to grab control, but experts point out the risk hands off the wheel often means minds off the road too, leading to these tragedies.

1:04The boards checking how well these systems track driver focus. One-frily driver now faces DUI homicide charges, with that case still open, no trial date yet. Witnesses noted issues like non-working tail lights on the Texas Honda, and this isn't the first time NTSB's eyed similar tech from Tesla and others. No fully self-driving cars hit U.S. lots yet, so as these partial systems evolve, expect tighter rules to keep eyes on the road in life safe. Durham News Today, powered by AI bringing you what matters.