November, 2015
An excellent article on this subject has been published by the NY Times.
Please see http://www.nytimes.com/2015/11/28/your-money/navigating-the-takata-airbag-recall.html
Lou
November, 2015
Will Paul Ryan speak for crash victims?
Over the period 2004 – 2013, in the Congressional District he currently represents, the number of crash deaths amounted to 729 people. That record averaged more than one crash death per week over a decade in just the District he has “represented” all those years. His record of crash deaths and that of crash deaths in every representative’s district are publicly available free to all at https://www.careforcrashvictims.com/CrashDeathMappingTools.php
The NY Times Editorial Board wrote about the legislation at the Speaker’s current attention. The editorial is titled “The Bill That Would Make Roads Less Safe”. Seehttp://www.nytimes.com/2015/11/04/opinion/the-bill-that-would-make-roads-less-safe.html?ref=opinion&_r=0
November, 2015
2. Polls Show Support FOR Safety:
NEW POLL FINDS AMERICANS ACROSS ALL SOCIO-ECONOMIC INDICATORS AND POLITICAL PARTIES SUPPORT SAFETY POSITIONS ON ISSUES NOW BEFORE CONGRESS
>> Support Criminal Penalties for Corporate Auto and Equipment Executives who Cover Up Dangerous Safety Defects
>> Support Car Dealers Being Required to Repair Recalled Used and Loaner Cars Before Consumers Drive Away
>> Oppose Teen Truck and Bus Drivers in Interstate Traffic and
>> Oppose Oversized Double Trailer Trucks on Our Nation’s Roads and Highways
Washington, D.C. (November 17, 2015) – Right now, Members of the House and Senate are racing to finish negotiations on a multi-billion dollar six-year surface transportation bill, known as the DRIVE Act (H.R. 22) and the annual spending bill for the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT)(H.R. 3488). These critically important bills not only will set transportation policies and funding levels for the construction and repair of highways, bridges and transit systems but they will also have a deadly impact on safety if changes are not made. Decisions about how safe or how dangerous our roads and highways will be are being made this week. Even though the bills will be paid for by taxpayers, anti-safety special interests aided by their friends in Congress have succeeded in carving corporate earmarks, industry giveaways and special exemptions from safety rules, all at the expense of public safety.
Advocates for Highway and Auto Safety (Advocates) commissioned a public opinion poll to gauge public support and opposition for a few of the critical motor vehicle and motor carrier safety issues at stake in the DRIVE Act and transportation appropriations bill. The poll was taken this past weekend and shows very strong levels of public support for safety positions across all categories including age, gender, religion, race, income, education and political party affiliation. Below is a summary of the poll findings. The complete findings of the poll are available at www.saferoads.org.
3. Some Officials Work AGAINST Safety
“WASHINGTON — Buried deep within a massive transportation bill that passed the House of Representatives is a little-noticed provision that won’t have much effect on highway projects, but is of great interest to automobile dealers.
The provision, an amendment offered just before midnight on Nov. 11, would allow dealers to rent or loan out vehicles even if they are subject to safety recalls. Rental car companies, meanwhile, don’t get the same treatment under the proposed law.
In essence, the amendment would allow an auto dealer to loan you a vehicle under active recall while you are getting your own fixed for the same defect.
The man who offered the amendment is no stranger to car dealerships. In fact, that’s his business. U.S. Rep.Roger Williams, R-Austin, sponsored the amendment. In introducing it on the floor of the House, he noted, “I am a second-generation auto dealer. I have been in the industry most of my life. I know it well.”
The possibility that his action might be considered a conflict of interest was apparently not on his mind, though it certainly occurred to others.”
November, 2015
Ralph Nader describes three purposes of Tort Law:“the three purposes of tort law. One is to compensate people for their injuries; the second is to disclose facts so the press picks up and publicizes the story alerting people about what to avoid, how to shop, and what their rights are; and the third is deterrence so other companies or other providers or vendors get the idea that maybe it’s better—and cheaper—to be safe than unsafe with your customers.” Seehttp://parade.com/439904/m-b-roberts/ralph-nader-on-lawsuits-you-never-have-enough-cases/
An Insurance Journal article describes a ruling by Judge Furman as follows:
“General Motors Co. and its law firm need not turn over privileged documents to drivers hoping to show that the automaker intended to commit a crime or fraud by concealing defective ignition switches in their vehicles, a Manhattan federal judge ruled on Nov. 25.
Despite finding “probable cause” to believe GM committed a crime or fraud by hiding the defect from regulators and the public, U.S. District Judge Jesse Furman found no showing that the automaker and King & Spalding produced the documents with an intent to further such misconduct.
Most of the documents related to the law firm’s advice from 2010 to 2013 on three crashes involving Chevrolet Cobalts. Vehicle owners said the deception justified a waiver of attorney-client privilege.
“Put simply, plaintiffs do not provide a factual basis for a good faith belief that the communications and work product they seek – let alone any particular communications or work product they seek – were made with the intent to further a crime or fraud,” Furman wrote.” Seehttp://www.insurancejournal.com/news/national/2015/11/30/390286.htm
You be the judge. Did Judge Furman meet the three tests? Compensation? Disclosure? Deterrence?
Who is Judge Furman?
“Furman’s brother Jason Furman serves as an economic adviser to President Barack Obama.[5]”
See https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jesse_M._Furman
Should Judge Furman have ruled differently for crash victims past, present, and future? Will there be more victims? Less compensation? Less deterrence?
You be the Jury in the Court of Public Opinion.
November, 2015
What if people created WANTED posters for members of Congress that place Deadly Loopholes in safety legislation that predictably will cause deaths to Americans?
WANTED posters have a long American history. See https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wanted_poster
See the latest outrage and help get signatures on the petition by the mother who lost two daughters in an unrepaired defective rental vehicle.
Statement of Jackie Gillan, President
Advocates for Highway and Auto Safety
Statement on Release of New Study, “Unclogging America’s Arteries 2015”
November 23, 2015
Today, the American Highway Users Alliance released a new study, “Unclogging America’s Arteries 2015, Prescriptions for Healthier Highways.” Advocates for Highway and Auto Safety (Advocates) supports efforts to promote healthier highways and reduce congestion. Solving roadway bottlenecks involves adequate funding but also advancing laws, policies and programs to reduce highway crashes. A major source of roadway congestion is slowed or stopped traffic when a crash occurs. Serious truck and car crashes often result in deaths and injuries that require the immediate assistance of emergency responders on the scene, shutting down or re-routing traffic, and causing hours of delay for all motorists.
This is the reason our organization and coalition partners are deeply concerned about the anti-safety rollbacks and attacks contained in the DRIVE Act, H.R. 22, now being negotiated in a conference with House and Senate Members. In 2013, the most recent year final figures are available, there were nearly 5.7 million police-reported crashes across the United States resulting in 32,719 fatalities and over 2 million injuries. Early estimates from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) predict a 9.5% increase in crash fatalities for the first quarter of 2015, compared to the first quarter of 2014 projections. These crashes come with an annual cost of $836 billion, amounting to a “crash tax” of approximately $2,600 for every person in the United States. Congestion caused by crashes, including travel delay, excess fuel consumption, greenhouse gases and criteria pollutants totaled $28 billion (NHTSA). To make our roads truly “healthier,” we need Congress to advance safety laws and policies that will address the economic and emotional costs of crashes as they deliberate over the DRIVE Act.
Unfortunately, both the House and Senate versions of the DRIVE Act ignore available solutions that will prevent crashes and instead, include provisions that will set back safety. For example, both bills include a provision that will allow teen truck and bus drivers to get behind the wheel of an 80,000 big rig or passenger-carrying bus and operate in interstate commerce despite overwhelming public opposition and compelling research showing the unacceptable high crash risk of young drivers. A public opinion poll released last week shows that 77% of the public opposes this proposal (conducted by ORC International). Additionally, there is a lethal loophole in the bill that will allow car dealerships to provide loaner or rental cars to consumers even though they have safety recalls that have not been fixed. The public resoundingly rejects this idea, with 86% of the public opposing.
Furthermore, the bills provide exemptions from federal rules on the limits of working hours for truck driver hours and truck size and weights for certain industries such as logging, ready mix concrete, dairy and construction materials. It is time for Congress to get serious about reducing the growing carnage on our roads and highways especially when we have commonsense and cost-effective solutions at hand. To seriously unclog our nation’s arteries and achieve healthier highways, Congress needs to listen to the public, not to trucking and auto interests that prescribe remedies that jeopardize public safety.
Congress has failed to protect Americans for way too long. See
https://www.careforcrashvictims.com/assets/MonthlyReportforJuly2015final.pdf
A mapping tool, free to the public, provides crash fatalities by Congressional district for the years 2004 – 2013. Available at https://www.careforcrashvictims.com/CrashDeathMappingTools.php
There you will see that in 2013, in the district currently “represented” by car dealer Roger Williams there were about 2 crash deaths per week.
Heck of a job!
November, 2015
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
November 18, 2015
Contact:
Ryan Taylor (Wicker), 202-224-6253
Dean Lieberman (Feinstein), 202-224-9629
Senate Votes to Remove Bigger Trucks Mandate From Transportation Appropriations Bill
Sens. Wicker, Feinstein Successful Again in Putting Chamber on Record Opposing Longer Double Trucks
WASHINGTON – The Senate today voted in favor of an amendment offered by U.S. Senators Roger Wicker, R-Miss., and Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., to remove a federal mandate from the Transportation and Housing and Urban Development appropriations bill, H.R. 2577, that would force states to allow large trucks to pull double 33-foot trailers. The Wicker-Feinstein amendment was adopted by a voice vote.
“A recent independent poll revealed that 77 percent of Americans oppose twin 33-foot trailer trucks on the nation’s highways and byways,” Wicker said. “The Senate stands with this overwhelming majority and with the 38 states who have said ‘no’ to these longer double trailers. This is a victory for public safety, states’ rights, and hard-working taxpayers.”
“Allowing the monstrous twin-33 trucks on our highways without a full understanding of the safety implications would be irresponsible and dangerous,” Feinstein said. “In my view, such a sweeping change runs counter to all notions of public safety and has no place in an appropriations bill. Senator Wicker and I were successful in stripping the language from the transportation funding bill on the floor today. Under our amendment, the Department of Transportation must complete a safety study before any changes to truck length are considered. This is a big win for public safety. I thank the coalition of law enforcement, victims groups, unions and the trucking industry that came together and said no to bigger, more dangerous trucks.”
For the second time in as many weeks, the Senate has gone on record opposing this federal mandate. Last week, the Senate passed a motion to instruct conferees on the highway reauthorization bill that also sought to remove the mandate.
Earlier this year, the Senate Appropriations Committee approved an amendment to the transportation funding bill requiring states to allow trucks with two 33-foot trailers on their highways. A tractor trailer with two 33-foot trailers measures approximately 91 feet in total length – equivalent to an 8-story office building. Currently, 38 states do not allow these longer trucks to operate within their jurisdictions. One study estimates that twin 33s would put more wear and tear on our nation’s roads, adding $1.2 billion to $1.8 billion in maintenance costs per year.
When the committee considered the measure, the Department of Transportation (DOT) advised that there is currently not enough data to draw firm conclusions on the safety implications of double 33-foot trailers. DOT recommended that no changes to truck size be considered at this time.
Specifically, the Wicker-Feinstein amendment would require DOT to complete a comprehensive safety study before longer trucks are permitted on highways. It would also require the agency to conduct a formal rulemaking process with public notice and comment period.
Groups supporting the Wicker-Feinstein amendment opposing twin 33-foot trailers include Advocates for Highway and Auto Safety, the American Automobile Association, the Teamsters Union, the Truckload Carriers Association, the Coalition Against Bigger Trucks,several state trucking associations, the National Troopers Coalition, and other law enforcement associations throughout the country.
November, 2015
Report CardHere is what is being considered in Congress for our “safety” for the next 6 years. Advocates have identified the good and bad sections along with Representatives of Congress by name and Congressional District. The Report Card is attached.
Crash Deaths By Congressional District Citizens can use the Crash Death Map Tool to see how many deaths occurred in each member’s district over the past decade. See http://www.arcgis.com/explorer/?open=e21e612d64654d75943f85a1a6035472&extent=-19044679.7278955,530211.736810937,-3588091.0679062,8231341.58761403
Claybrook Warning As Joan Claybrook warned recently, in crashes the nation can expect to suffer the loss of 200,000 American lives and 12 million people injured over the next 6 years. See Claybrook Testimony attached.
Lou
