Auto braking is now commonplace on high-end vehicles like the new BMW 750i, but will soon be on most vehicles at all price points.

Ten major vehicle manufacturers from the U.S., Europe and Japan have jointly agreed to make automatic emergency braking systems standard on all their future vehicles.

An advanced form of forward collision warning systems that have already been shown to significantly reduce crashes, have already begun to migrate from high-end luxury models to more mainstream products and a number of automakers already offer auto braking technology as optional equipment. But the announcement means it would become all but ubiquitous.

The move appears to allow the auto industry to take the lead in rolling out auto braking systems, rather than waiting for the federal government to mandate the technology, as had been widely anticipated. At an event in Ruckersville, Virginia today, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration chief Mark Rosekind said the agreement puts the rollout of the technology on the “fast track,” calling it “life-saving technology that everyone should have.”

The various automakers participating in the agreement have not yet set a timeframe for the move, however, and Rosekind made it clear he doesn’t plan to let things drag out, cautioning, “If this can’t get it done, we’ll do it.”

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Today’s automobiles are being outfitted with a fast-growing assortment of so-called active safety technologies. Unlike passive safety systems, such as airbags, designed to reduce injuries and fatalities in a crash, the goal is to prevent a collision in the first place.

Forward crash warning technology can use a variety of sensors, most typically radar and artificial vision, to detect when a vehicle is approaching an obstacle too quickly. That can be another car or, in some systems, a bicycle, pedestrian or even a large animal. The system will sound a warning to get the driver’s attention.

Automatic emergency braking, or AEB, systems add a second level of protection. If a driver ignores the alert or doesn’t respond aggressively enough, the vehicle can begin to brake autonomously. Some systems only operate at low speeds, say to 30 miles per hour or so. The most advanced versions, however, can apply braking even at Autobahn speeds.

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An illustration by Mercedes shows how Automatic Emergency Braking works.

“The evidence is mounting that AEB is making a difference,” said Adrian Lund, president of the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety. NHTSA Administrator Lund was attending a ceremony marking the expansion of the IIHS crash test facility where the auto braking announcement was made.

“Most crashes involve driver error,” emphasized Lund, adding that “This technology can compensate for the mistakes every driver makes because the systems are always on alert, monitoring the road ahead and never getting tired or distracted.”

Both the IIHS and NHTSA have been trying to encourage automakers to add auto braking technology to their vehicles. It is now necessary to receive the Insurance Institute’s top rating for a new vehicle. NHTSA also will consider whether a vehicle has the technology as part of its updated Five-Star New Car Assessment Program.

The private safety group and the federal agency hope to encourage other makers to join the pact, while also pushing truck manufacturers to begin offering the technology.

The 10 manufacturers who have launched the effort are: BMW AG, Ford Motor Co., General Motors Co., Mazda Motor Co, Daimler AG’s Mercedes-Benz, Tesla Motors Inc, Toyota Motor Corp., Volkswagen AG and its Audi AG unit and Volvo. Together they account for 57% of the vehicles sold in the U.S. each year. Other makers, including Fiat Chrysler, are considering joining the coalition.

General Motors welcome “the call for a voluntary industry safety agreement that would lead to making forward collision warning and automatic emergency braking standard on light vehicles,” said Jeff Boyer, GM’s vice president of global vehicle safety.

The move was no surprise to Jeremy Carlson, a senior analyst at IHS Automotive who noted that over the last few years, automatic emergency braking has “proven out in both laboratory and real-world conditions.” The technology has become more commonplace as “prices (have) inched lower, and momentum has increased as regulators paid close attention to a new generation of vehicle safety technology.”

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