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NHTSA Calls For Public Comment On Long Range Strategic Planning

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration recently called for public comment on the issues and conerns the agency should focus on over the next five year period. Comments are required to be submitted by August 16, 2004 and can be submitted online. Commentary can address one or more of the designated questions or may include input the author believes is appropriate for agency action.

The issue that I am particularly focused on is the lack of collision repair safety standards. While NHTSA mandates vehicle standards for newly manufactured motor vehicles and their parts, NHTSA does not mandate any minimum safety standards for cars or trucks one they have been repaired. In fact, the majority of states do not regulate who can repair a vehicle or how it can be repaired. California and Michigan are two exceptions. In most U.S. states, cosmetologists have higher education, training, and oversight requirements than people welding your car back together.

Now there is a frightening thought.

Long Range Strategic Planning Document NHTSA-2004-17794

NHTSA Makes "Black Box" Inclusion Voluntary

Download 0413241_edr_requests_for_comment.doc

Recently, the NHTSA published a final rule for comment on the inclusion of event data recorders (EDRs) (aka "Black Boxes") in cars and trucks. The rule proposes voluntary inclusion of EDRs allowing manufacturers to elect whether to install such devices. NHTSA had been considering two separate petitions by individuals to mandate inclusion of EDRs.

Many cars and trucks already are equipped with these recording devices. While the NHTSA is not mandating inclusion in future vehicle production, the agency proposes to require manufacturers who voluntarily install EDRs to capture specific information and prohibits the treatment of the recorded data to be deemed proprietary.

Concerns for privacy prompted California to enact legislation prohibiting the use of EDR data without the vehicle owner's express consent or absent a court order. This legislation went in to effect for all vehicles manufactured after July 1, 2004.

Event Data Recorders: The Black Box of the Road; The Black Box Revisited