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A Vision for a Safer America
Imagine a highway system without crashes.
With the nation’s highway fatalities continuing at 43,000 annually, the toll of deaths and injuries on our roadways is among the most compelling public health issues of our time. Each day over 120 people die and over 7,400 are seriously hurt. Car crashes are the leading cause of death for persons between the ages of 3 and 33. For the elderly, they represent among the greatest risk factors. Yet progress in reducing highway crashes has stalled. It is time for action that will bring about the changes needed to save lives.
Adopt a National Goal
National, state, and local elected leaders must join forces to set a national goal to reduce total annual highway fatalities by 50 percent by the year 2030, toward the ultimate goal of zero deaths.
Adopt and Enforce Tougher Laws
National, state and local elected officials must enact and aggressively enforce legislation to create a culture of zero tolerance for high-risk behavior. This includes addressing:
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Drinking and driving;
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Primary seat belt laws;
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Teen graduated licensing;
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Motorcycle helmet requirements;
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Speeding;
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Stiffening penalties for driving without a license;
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Closing gaps and weaknesses in the criminal justice system;
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Implementation of ignition interlocking systems; and
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Automated enforcement technology.
The Challenges to Overcome
Change social behavior. A major challenge in reducing highway fatalities is a culture that tolerates risk-taking behavior such as drinking and driving, speeding, distracted driving (driving while talking on cell phones, text messaging, eating, etc.) and driving without a valid license.
Major causes of crashes. The big three behavioral factors in highway fatalities are: seat belts—55 percent of fatal crash victims are not belted; alcohol—39 percent of fatalities involve alcohol; and speed—30 percent of fatalities involve excessive speed. In addition, about 20 percent of fatalities are tied to unlicensed, or revoked or suspended license drivers. (Figure 25.)
Roadway characteristics of greatest concern. Road and lane departure—60 percent of highway fatalities involve a vehicle leaving the roadway or lane; intersections—45 percent of crashes with 21 percent of the fatalities occuring at intersections; and close to half of all fatalities occur on rural two-lane roads.
Behavioral Strategies for Reducing Deaths
Figure 25
Alcohol. Even though every state has adopted 0.08 as the level of Blood Alcohol Content (BAC) which determines intoxication, over 10,000 fatalities in 2005 involved drivers with BAC levels of over 0.15. If states decide not to tolerate this behavior any longer they may require that ignition interlocks be installed in the vehicle of anyone convicted of a DUI. This means that if persons are drinking they could no longer start their cars.
Seat Belts. Seat-belt usage has risen from less than 70 percent in the mid-1990s to 81 percent in 2006, and in 11 states the rate exceeds 90 percent. Yet, 27 states do not have primary seat belt laws, and over half of the fatal victims were unbelted. Enactment of primary seat belt laws to achieve a 90 percent rate of seat belt usage could save 8,000 lives per year, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
Speeding and Aggressive Driving. Tougher speed enforcement laws and enforcement and adjudication can have enable the state and local governments to reduce fatalities by 5,000 per year.
Motorcycle Helmets. Motorcycle fatalities have doubled in the past 10 years with double digit annual growth rates. While motorcycles represent only 2.4 percent of registered vehicles, they account for 1 in 10 fatalities. Considering the costs of long-term care for motorcycle riders who receive serious brain injuries in crashes in which they were not wearing helmets, even conservative legislators may decide that mandatory helmet laws make sense.
Pedestrians and Bicycle Riders. Pedestrians and bicyclists comprise 11 percent of fatalities per year. As we encourage more people to walk and ride bikes, their safety has to be improved as well.
Older Drivers, Minority Youth. Demographics are changing. In 2007, one in eight people in the United States is 65 years or older. By 2030, this number will be one in five. The elderly generally have slower reaction times, do not see as well, and are more fragile when involved in crashes. Steps need to be taken to improve pavement markings and signage to improve their visibility. Licensing reviews are necessary. The number of younger drivers are also expected to increase. Their lack of driving experience and maturity are factors to be addressed. Traffic fatalities and serious injuries impact a larger share of the younger population of Hispanics and African Americans, than for the population at large.
Highway Safety Funding and Improvements
As Congress acts to increase Federal funding for transportation, a significant increase will be needed in funding for safety: infrastructure, behavioral activities, research and development, and data management programs. Several things will make a real difference:
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States and local governments must be given the freedom to use highway funds to their best advantage, including for behavioral programs;
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Expansion of the Interstate System means that more people can travel on roads which are twice as safe as the average elsewhere.
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Building a national network of truck-only highways will allow truck traffic to be separated from car traffic. That can save lives.
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States must move aggressively to implement roadway safety improvements such as freeway median cable barrier placement, rumble strips and stripes on two-lane roads, and major intersection upgrades.
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States and local government should use bigger, more visible signs, more visible lane markings and other improvements which aid the growing ranks of older drivers.
Vehicle Safety Technology Can Make a Huge Safety Difference
Imagine a highway system without crashes, except for those unavoidable situations involving unanticipated obstacles or mechanical failures. The transportation system of 2040 will meet this goal through the use of vehicles with on-board intelligence and communications to prevent collisions with other vehicles and roadside obstacles.
- Vehicles will be equipped with automatic speed control and braking that override the actions of the driver if safe speeds are being exceeded or there are obstacles ahead or on either side. They will also alert drivers departing from their intended lane in an unsafe manner.
- The vehicle of 2040 will also assess the driver’s capabilities to operate a motor vehicle by sensing blood alcohol levels and identifying inattentive drivers who may sleepy or ill.
- If predetermined driver impairment thresholds are exceeded, the vehicle will be disabled.
- Installation of Electronic Stability Control technology as mandated by U.S. DOT Secretary of Transportation Mary Peters in all new cars will save as many as 9,600 lives per year when fully implemented.
Many of these capabilities already exist. Those that do not, are in the final stages of research. The combined impact of these capabilities will be the reduction or elimination of crashes due to speed, drunk driving, inattention, unsafe operation, or unsafe external conditions. When combined, these features offer the ability to reduce or eliminate the majority of crashes along with the resulting pain, suffering and financial losses incurred.
Figure 26. Vision 2015 Target
Automobile manufacturers are making a corporate commitment to do their part to improve vehicle safety. For example, General Motors with its OnStar™ system was the first company to offer automatic notification to emergency response agencies when a vehicle is in a serious collision. The Ford Motor Company reports that 18 of its vehicle lines received five-star ratings for frontal and side impact from NHTSA in its 2007 U.S. New Car Assessment Program. Ford reports that it also continues to lead the industry in promoting safety belt use through its Beltminder™ system. Both Ford and Nissan are working on new advanced safety features such as lane departure warnings and assisted braking. When Nissan officials came to AASHTO to demonstrate their new lane keeping technology, they showed us their corporate “Vision 2015 Target” to reduce the incidence of highway fatalities involving Nissan vehicles substantially below the NHTSA goal of one fatality per 100 million vehicle miles driven.
Roadway Safety Technologies
Roadway safety technologies can also help reduce fatalities. Almost 60 percent of fatalities involve road departure, with the majority of these on rural two-lane highways. Shoulder rumble strips have been proven to be effective in reducing departure crashes. This measure alone has the potential to save 600 lives per year. Many states have experienced significant increases in cross median crashes. Low cost cable barrier systems placed in medians of freeways, can reduce cross median fatalities by 95 percent. For example, in 1999–2000, more than 70 people in South Carolina lost their lives in Interstate median crashes. After installing 315 miles of three-strand median cable in three years total median fatalities were reduced to eight. Other measures include the use of retro-reflective materials to increase the visibility of traffic control signs at night, and using roundabouts to replace intersections.
The Potential of Vehicle Infrastructure Integration (VII)
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The Vehicle Infrastructure Integration Initiative is a partnership between Federal and State DOTs and the automobile industry to deploy new vehicle-to-vehicle and vehicle-to-roadside communication capabilities. Many feel that the VII system has tremendous potential. It can be used to avoid collisions, receive early warning of hazards, and to ensure more accurate lane keeping by drivers. Mobility is enhanced through the transmission of traffic, roadway, and weather conditions measured by the on-board vehicle sensors. |
