« IIHS WANTS NHTSA TO MOVE FASTER ON ITS ESC RULE DATE | Main | TRUCKING ASSOCIATION WANTS SPEED GOVERNORS MANDATED »
October 31, 2006
CHILD SAFETY RULES FOR CARS OPPOSED BY COMPANIES
Advocacy groups spearheaded by parents who have lost children in unintentional backup rollovers are meeting strong opposition from auto makers as they call for legislation and rulemaking to require vehicle features to reduce such harm, the Detroit Free Press reports.
“It's the most contentious debate in automotive safety, but one that's elicited more tears than action so far. While acknowledging the parents' anguish, automakers have fought their proposals to a standstill. They point to voluntary improvements, such as transmissions that can't be accidentally pulled out of park, and argue the technology that might be required would cost hundreds of millions of dollars while saving few lives, if any. And the industry maintains that the best sensors and cameras on the back of a vehicle can't replace human eyes and ears, raising the question of how much responsibility the parents should shoulder,” the Free Press said.
The industry insists that the most effective way to help prevent what it calls “backing non-crash incidents” is to “urge the driver to check around the vehicle before backing," the Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers said in a letter to lawmakers. But pending federal legislation known as the Kids and Cars bills “could save hundreds of children a year at a minor cost to automakers and consumers,” the newspaper said. “The bills address three common ways children get hurt around vehicles - by shifting them out of park, getting trapped by power windows and being backed over. Of those three, back-overs appear to be the most prevalent and the most deadly, in part due to the growing number of large trucks, SUVs and vans.”
"The issue isn't technology, it's common sense," a GM spokesman told the Free Press. "In the case of back-overs, if you have young children at home the responsibility does rest primarily with the caregiver or parent."
Posted by MVHAP at October 31, 2006 02:06 PM