|
 Officials also said Thursday that they expect to decide by year's
end how to encourage automakers to make some special safety systems
already in certain high-end vehicles available in more cars. Those
systems warn drivers before a collision that they are about to run
into another vehicle and can brake automatically to avoid a crash or
make it less severe.
The innovations — collision avoidance, seat belt interlocks and
driver alcohol detection systems — hold the potential of
dramatically reducing traffic fatalities, according to the National
Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
As they looked ahead to emerging safety technologies, officials
released data showing the first increase in highway fatalities since
2005. There were 33,561 traffic deaths in 2012, or 1,082 more than
the year before.
Despite the government's best efforts, some Americans are still
driving drunk, driving distracted and not wearing seat belts, David
Strickland, the agency's head, told reporters in a conference call.
"These technologies are in within reach," he said. "They address the
top three highway safety threats. They have the potential to
significantly decrease those deaths. We only need the will to act."
The 3 percent increase in highway fatalities may be due in part to
last year's unusually warm winter, which lengthened the motorcycle
riding season. Seventy-two percent of the increase occurred in the
first three months of the year. Most of those involved were
motorcyclists or pedestrians, the government said.
Preliminary data so far this year indicates traffic deaths may be
dropping again, Strickland said.
The seat belt interlocks would prevent cars and trucks from being
driven when the driver or a passenger isn't buckled in properly. The
agency said this potentially could save about 3,000 people a year.
The agency is examining whether it should change safety standards to
allow automakers to use the devices to satisfy current government
requirements for occupant protection in crash tests.
Automakers have indicated they'd prefer to install automatic systems
that ensure all occupants are belted, which is cheaper than spending
money on designing the interiors of cars and trucks to ensure
unbelted occupants, who get thrown around in collisions, aren't
injured, Strickland said. The safety administration is trying to
determine whether the interlocks can be made tamper-proof and highly
reliable.
The "driver alcohol detection system" differs from devices already
required by some states for drivers arrested or convicted of drunken
driving. In those cases, drivers usually have to take some step —
often breathing into a tube — to test their blood alcohol content
before starting the car.
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Detection systems such as those NHTSA is researching with automakers
don't require any action on the driver's part except putting his
hands on the steering wheel, pushing a start button with a finger or
simply breathing. The systems can detect through touch or air
samples whether the driver's blood alcohol content is above the 0.08
legal limit. The idea is to eventually include the systems as
standard or optional equipment in new vehicles, regardless of
whether the driver has a history of drunken driving.
"The automatic system would be enabled every time the car is
started, but unobtrusive so it would not pose an inconvenience to
the non-intoxicated driver," the agency said.
The technology is still at least five years away, Strickland said.
There were 10,322 people killed in drunken driving crashes last
year, a 4.6 percent increase over 2011, the agency said. Most of the
drivers involved had a blood alcohol content of 0.15 or higher,
nearly double the legal limit. "Such technology could save thousands
of these victims every year," the agency said.
After six years of declines, the increase in drunken driving deaths
is "alarming," said Jan Withers, president of Mothers Against Drunk
Driving. "This news is frustrating because we know what works, and
we know how to stop these senseless tragedies."
The collision avoidance systems address one of the most common types
of auto accidents. Last year, one-third of all police reported
crashes that started with one vehicle striking the rear end of
another vehicle, the agency said.
Motorcycle deaths were up 7.1 percent last year, the third annual
increase. Pedestrians also experienced a large increase in
fatalities, 6.4 percent. A majority of pedestrian deaths occur in
urban areas at night and involve alcohol, often with pedestrians
stepping into the street in the middle of the block rather than at
intersections.
[Associated
Press; JOAN LOWY]
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