Vehicles should better protect against pedestrian head injuries, NHTSA says
Michael Brooks, executive director of the Center for Auto Safety, described the proposed rule as one piece of a multipart effort to address pedestrian safety that is “sorely needed” and one that would be a significant milestone for federal regulations in this area.
“The NHTSA pedestrian safety proposal currently open for comment relates specifically to head impacts and hood shape, and would help reduce the risk of death and injuries due to head trauma. If successful it would be the agency’s most significant rule to date in the area of pedestrian crashworthiness.”
By Eric D. Lawrence
November 16, 2024
The rise in pedestrian deaths on and along U.S. roads has been a troubling story for years.
But this fall, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration announced its intention to require most vehicles in the United States be designed to reduce the seriousness of certain types of crashes involving pedestrians.
The new rule would cover vehicles weighing 10,000 pounds or less and include cars, trucks, SUVs and vans. It “would establish test procedures simulating a head-to-hood impact and performance requirements to minimize the risk of head injury” in crashes up to 25 mph, according to NHTSA.
The agency projects it would save 67 lives each year, a significant number for those saved as well as their loved ones but well shy of the annual death toll. NHTSA notes that between 2013 and 2022, pedestrian fatalities increased 57% from 4,779 to 7,522 annually.
Speed, distraction, infrastructure and, as a Detroit Free Press/USA Today Network investigation revealed in 2018, the increasing presence of large trucks and SUVs with their higher front ends, have all played a role, along with factors, including darkness and impairment.
Click here to view the full story from the Detroit Free Press.
