Recent breakthroughs in electronics, artificial intelligence, and communications provide the basis for designing and producing the smart sensors, computers with greatly increased capacity and computational speed, and control systems needed to facilitate and augment driver performance and, ultimately, relieve the driver of most tasks, thereby achieving significant improvements in collision avoidance. In-depth crash investigation studies in the United States have consistently shown that human error is the major contributory factor in most crashes—— a definite or probable cause, or severity increasing factor, approximately 90 percent of the time. Drivers need help in recognizing imminent crash situations and in making quick, correct decisions with regard to avoidance maneuvers, and, to a lesser extent, in carrying out the selected maneuver. Advanced technology provides the potential to help drivers better sense impending danger, sense and alert drivers of lapses in their judgements or skills, aid them in performing the driving task, and, ultimately, compensate for some of their errors. Since much of the non-recurring congestion on freeways in the United States results from crashes, improving the crash avoidance capability of motor vehicles will contribute to alleviating congestion. The NHTSA program outlined in this paper will provide the vehicle engineering and human factors research necessary to achieve the potential safety benefits promised by IVHS.