Four vehicle manufacturers equipped virtually all the light vehicles they produced for the U.S. market between Sept. 1, 2018, and Aug. 31, 2019, with automatic emergency braking (AEB), three years ahead of a 2022 target. Audi and Volvo joined Mercedes-Benz and Tesla, which hit the target last year, in outfitting all their light passenger vehicles […]
U.S. Roadway Fatalities Decline for Second Straight Year
Newer, safer vehicles helped reduce fatalities as driving reached record levels. The U.S. Department of Transportation’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration released highway crash fatality data for 2018, showing a 2.4 percent decline in overall fatalities, the second consecutive year of reduced crash fatalities. Under this Administration and Secretary Chao’s leadership, the USDOT has focused […]
Consumer Reports Says Government Documents Show Safety Failures by Tesla
Says NHTSA must do more to hold companies accountable, update 5-star rating program. Consumer Reports yesterday said that emails and other government documents released publicly for the first time show failures by Tesla regarding its safety claims and the performance of Autopilot, and the documents reveal that the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) must […]
U.S. DOT Holds Conference on Traffic Safety and Radio Spectrum for V2X Communications
The Automotive Service Association (ASA) reports that at the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Conference on Traffic Safety and the 5.9 GHz Spectrum, the deputy administrator of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) reiterated DOT’s No. 1 priority is safety. NHTSA’s Heidi King said using the 5.9 GHz spectrum to incorporate vehicle-to-everything (V2X) technologies within […]
General Motors Calls for National Zero Emissions Vehicle Program
Manufacturer believes national program supports its zero crashes, zero emissions and zero congestion vision. Could add more than 7 million electric vehicles on the road by 2030. General Motors announced that it was filing comments today to the U.S. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and U.S. Department of Transportation’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration on […]
NHTSA Launches Drugged Driving Initiative and Announces March 15 Summit
The U.S. Department of Transportation’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) announced it is launching a new initiative to combat drugged driving, a growing problem on U.S. roads. Driving under the influence of drugs (DUID) is against the law in all 50 states. With a national opioid epidemic and states legalizing marijuana, NHTSA is making […]
Vehicle Manufacturers Report Progress on Autonomous Emergency Braking Commitment
Toyota leads major vehicle manufacturers on number of vehicles with over 56 percent of its 2017 fleet, 1.4 of 2.5 million vehicles, with accident avoidance feature. Four of 20 automakers report that automatic emergency braking (AEB) is standard on more than half of their 2017 model year vehicles, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) […]
Fatal Crashes in the U.S. Up 5.6% in 2016
Fatality rate at highest level since 2008. Distracted driving down, speeding and drunk driving increase. The U.S. Department of Transportation’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration released fatal traffic crash data for calendar year 2016. According to NHTSA data, which was collected from all 50 states and the District of Columbia, 37,461 lives were lost on […]
U.S. Department of Transportation Reexamining Penalty Rate for Fuel Economy Standards
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration opens period for comment; publishes notice delaying effective date of CAFE penalties rule The U.S. Department of Transportation’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) announced that it is reexamining a rule that adjusts civil penalties related to the Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) standards for inflation. Fuel economy regulations have […]
NHTSA Sets ‘Quiet Car’ Safety Standard to Protect Pedestrians
Regulator adds requirement for hybrid and electric vehicles to have audible alert to help prevent 2,400 pedestrian injuries a year. The U.S. Department of Transportation’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) announced that it is adding a sound requirement for all newly manufactured hybrid and electric light-duty vehicles to help protect pedestrians. The new federal […]