The largest threat to safety that all electric and hybrid cars pose is to pedestrians. Electric motors are quiet. If you can’t hear them, then it is reasonable to expect that someone will eventually walk out in front of one. New regulations are going to change that.

President Obama signed new regulations into law that require some sort of noise making device be installed in every all electric and hybrid model. The regulations allow for an on/off switch for the noise maker. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) is planning to take the regulations one step further by removing the on/off switch so that the cars make noise at all times.

The noise making regulations make sense from all angles. It will insure the safety of pedestrians while adding a certain level of security for drivers. It may also prevent a few lawsuits from finding their way into the court systems.