According to the National Roads & Motorists’ Association (NRMA) there are over 20,000 kangaroo strikes on Australian roads each year costing over AU$75m in insurance claims.

In response, Volvo Cars is developing a system that uses radar and camera technology to detect kangaroos and automatically apply the brakes if an accident is imminent.

Research has already begun, with a team of Volvo Cars safety experts spending this week in the Australian Capital Territory to film and study the roadside behaviour of kangaroos in their natural habitat.

Martin Magnusson, senior safety engineer at Volvo Cars, said: “In Sweden we have done research involving larger, slower moving animals like moose, reindeer and cows which are a serious threat on our roads. Kangaroos are smaller than these animals and their behaviour is more erratic. This is why it’s important that we test and calibrate our technology on real kangaroos in their natural environment.”

He added: “The Volvo Cars City Safety technology is a true state-of-the-art technology, because the brakes can be primed in milliseconds – much faster than a human reacts. We are only at the beginning of what is possible.”