The carmaker even made a presentation and showcase the sounds the car is able to make, in an attempt to put to rest worries that a sound-less vehicle would be hazardous to pedestrians, especially blind ones. The downside is, advocates for the blind say, that the system can be turned off at a flip of a switch.
The National Federation of the Blind issued a statement on the matter, expressing its disappointment "that the driver is permitted to turn off the sound.”
“In effect, allows drivers to deactivate this important safety feature and thereby endanger pedestrians, especially those who are blind," the statement, cited by The New York Times, reads.
“The biggest thing with us is that we don’t think the driver should be able to switch the sound off,” Chris Danielsen, spokesman for the National Federation of the Blind added.
Nissan Leaf's sounds, generated by a synthesizer under, are relayed through a speaker in the front driver’s side wheel well. The system sweeps from 2.5kHz at the high end to a low of 600Hz. The sound emitted by the system is louder when the car starts, is released as an intermittent sound when the car is in reverse and is disengaged when the Leaf exceeds 30 km/h (18 mph), because the sound generated by the tire and the wind makes the car audible enough.
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