States Ranked by Crash Fatality Rates and Election Probabilities Red, Blue and Yellow (for Swing)


States Ranked by Crash Fatality Rates and Election Probabilities Red, Blue and Yellow (for Swing)

September 19, 2013

Dear Care for Crash Victims Community Members:

This is to update my recent blog on this subject.

 

Investigative reporters and a group of powerfully persistent citizens led by two aggrieved moms that lost sons in Van crashes in Canada are pushing for greater safety.

 

A Canadian group called VanAngels has been documenting the safety needs and potential policy changes for greater safety at www.vanangels.ca. This is an admirable effort and resource for safety advocates.

 

They provided the following:

Transport Canada’s public website with the summarized results of the 2 year 15-passenger van safety review and testing.

http://www.tc.gc.ca/eng/roadsafety/tp-tp2436-rs200808-p5-1211.htm

 

Refer to page 65 of the following report “Evaluation of 15-Passenger Vans” by the Canadian Council of Motor Transport Administrators (CCMTA) which was released in January 2013 as a follow-up to Transport Canada’s Safety Review. It will give the make and year of the vans up until 2009.

 

http://www.ccmta.ca/english/pdf/CCMTA%20Evaluation%20of%2015-Passenger%20Vans%202013%202%2022%201138a.pdf

 

Our Van Angels group had pressured for the Safety Review and also a ‘national approach’ to the safety issues concerning 15-passenger van use in Canada. The CCMTA’s response to a national educational campaign was to create a guideline brochure which is to be sent out to every registered 15-passenger van owner in Canada. There is nothing new in this brochure that hasn’t already been said years before! It also puts the onus of responsibility onto the owners and drivers thereby deflecting any accountability from industry and government!

 

http://www.ccmta.ca/english/pdf/CCMTA-15pGuidelines-ENG.pdf

 

In the U.S. the Center for Auto Safety is examining the matter and Clarence Ditlow tells us:

Safety inspections would catch worn tires which can easily trigger a rollover when they fail in use. This church van obviously had severe roof crush. Sadly, NHTSA’s new roof crush standard which doubles the force applied to the roof to 3 times the vehicle’s weight & requires each side to be sequentially subjected the 3 times the vehicle’s weight does not apply to vehicles with a GVWR above 10,000 pounds which would exempt 15-passenger vans. (I am attaching the FR notice on the final rule).

 

This is the most recent survey I can find of state laws. This report focuses on public school transportation http://www.nasdpts.org/documents/vanssurveyfeb04.pdf

 

It is from 2004 so most likely outdated, but it does give a good overview of state laws. It looks like a majority of states have laws prohibiting transport in 15 passenger vans to/from school and school activities. However, very few states have applied the law to private schools and churches.

 

See Roof Crush Rule promulgated by NHTSA during early days of Obama Administration attached.

Additional NHTSA Report 809735 is attached along with an informative Public Citizen Report.

Previous Blog Post: Dear Care for Crash Victims Community Members:

Another tragic fatal rollover reported:

 

https://www.wtxl.com/news/more-dead-in-florida-church-van-crash/article_bd0dec62-1ec9-11e3-b5ec-0019bb30f31a.html

 

NHTSA issued a press release warning earlier this year:

 

http://www.nhtsa.gov/About+NHTSA/Press+Releases/Consumer+Advisory:+NHTSA+Reminds+Drivers+of+15-Passenger+Vans+to+Guard+Against+Rollover+Crashes+During+the+Warm-Weather+Driving+Season

and a decade ago there were Pubic Citizen warnings:

 

http://www.citizen.org/autosafety/passengervan/

 

When will we ever learn?

Press releases are not enough.

 

NHTSA has many powers of investigation, recall, rulemaking, research, publicity, and public education.

We really can and must do better protecting the American people.

 

If people want an insight into how government came to fail protecting the American people, I recommend reading the Nixon tape of the conversation with Henry Ford II and Lee Iaccoca also attached. Nixon stated: “It’s true in, in the environmentalists and it’s true of the consumerism people. They’re a group of people that aren’t one really damn bit interested in safety or clean air. What they’re interested in is destroying the system. They’re enemies of the system.”

 

As one who was fired by EPA under Nixon, I don’t think of myself or these moms as enemies of the system. Readers can see more on my work in the 1970s at my web site. Of course, I was not privy to the conversation at the White House back then. But I still believe we can do better protecting people from pollution and crashes.

 

Documents Attached:

 

 

Nader Asks Obama to Focus on America’s Safety Needs

Dear Care for Crash Victims Community Members:

Ralph Nader tries to focus President Obama on the safety needs of America here at home where there are many clear and present dangers not being adequately addressed.

Nader writes: “Taking Mr. Obama at his often repeated words that “the safety of the American people” is his top priority,…” and then cites many needs here at home.

Please see http://nader.org/2013/09/13/obama-crowding-out-america/

Nader once again has his focus on the public interest here in the U.S. where for decades Americans have seen too many needless tragedies, too much pain, suffering, and economic losses.

We can add some auto safety statistics that President Obama needs to focus on:

    • Currently in the U.S. each day nearly 100 people die of crash injuries — more than half die without transport to a medical treatment facility — and another estimated 400 people suffer serious injuries. U.S. DOT dollar values for preventing such losses currently amount to about $1 Billion each day.
    • In the year 2013, the total number of crash deaths in the U.S.A. since 1900 now exceeds 3,585,000 people. The number injured is estimated to exceed 255,000,000. That is 5 times the number of Americans who died and 150 times the number wounded in all wars since 1776. https://www.careforcrashvictims.com/clock.php
    • In 2013, the National Academy of Sciences reported that the U.S. ranks last in mortality from transportation injuries. “In 2009, the United States had the highest death rate from transportation related accidents among the 17 peer countries…” See Shorter Lives, Poorer Health, p. 32, available at http://nap.edu/catalog.php?record_id=13497
    • Since 1978 in the U.S., more people have died and suffered serious crash injuries than died or were wounded in all wars since 1776.
    • Since President Obama was elected in 2008, the number of Americans who died of crash injuries is 132,350 and another estimated 500,000 suffered serious crash injuries.

As a citizen, I offered 3 Steps the President could take – without any new legislation – to assure that the losses of American crash victims in his second term do not exceed the losses suffered in his first term. See https://www.careforcrashvictims.com/assets/MonthlyReport-January2013-Vol1.pdf

Mr. President please heed Ralph Nader’s advice. He is right. America needs you to do so. And Yes, you can.

NHTSA CIREN – Defending Rigged Rescue Rules for Crash Victims – Care for Crash Victims


NHTSA CIREN – Defending Rigged Rescue Rules for Crash Victims – Care for Crash Victims

September, 2013

Dear Care for Crash Victims Community Members:

 

Hopefully Administrator Strickland will act in the public interest to restore “Rollover” and “Extrication” to the Triage Guidelines and restore credibility and effectiveness to the NHTSA CIREN Program.

 

September 2013 Monthly Report.

Download Report