Systems that let drivers take their hands off the wheel don’t improve safety, NTSB head says

The systems that allow drivers to take their hands off the wheel are convenient but don’t improve safety because people are often too reliant on them and end up paying more attention to their cellphones and infotainment screens than to the road, the head of the National Transportation Safety Board said Tuesday.

At Tuesday’s hearing on two fatal crashes involving Ford’s Blue Cruise system, the NTSB recommended that Ford find ways to improve the way its system monitors drivers, and urged...