In order to move the United States Towards Zero Crash Deaths, I am asking President Obama to first set a National Vision Zero Goal and then to write a memorandum which would establish a National White House Task Force to actually make things happen to reduce crash deaths across the roads of our country.
Here is my idea for what a Vision Zero Task Force would look like:
Establishing a White House Task Force to Achieve the Vision Zero Goal of Crash Death Reduction
Now this makes me mad! I just found an IIHS Status Report from March 29, 1977: http://www.iihs.org/externaldata/srdata/docs/sr1206.pdf
IIHS was reporting on a meeting that took place on March 16, 1977 — three days before I got married! That’s almost 39 years ago — long before any of my 9 children were born, let alone my two youngest daughters, AnnaLeah and Mary!
The government and industry apparently didn’t get underride rulemaking right then! And they clearly hadn’t gotten it right by May 4, 2013 — when Mary and AnnaLeah died from truck underride! But they better watch out, because I am not going to sit by and watch while thousands more die for no good reason!
See the testimony in May 2009 by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, in which they call for tougher underride guard standards and with an attachment of the history of federal rulemaking on underride guards (pasted below): http://tinyurl.com/phlaqon
“The history of Federal rulemaking on truck underride guards:
IIHS, 2009
I also found this underride research article tonight from 1998: http://papers.sae.org/982755/
Mariolani, J., Schmutzler, L., Arruda, A., Occhipinti, S. et al., “Impact Project: Searching for Solution to the Underride Problem,” SAE Technical Paper 982755, 1998, doi:10.4271/982755.
“Rear underride crashes kill thousands of people yearly worldwide. Underride guards did not follow the progress achieved by the automotive safety technology. . .”
And now, here we are in 2016: http://www.regulations.gov/#!docketDetail;D=NHTSA-2015-0118.
Let’s get it right this time. Somebody’s life depends on it. Lots of somebodies.
Underride Roundtable coming up soon: https://annaleahmary.com/2015/10/underride-roundtable-save-the-date-may-5-2016/
Donate to our underride research here: https://www.fortrucksafety.com/
Missin’ you, AnnaLeah & Mary. . .
Share our Vision Zero Petition in memory of AnnaLeah & Mary: http://www.thepetitionsite.com/417/742/234/save-lives-not-dollars-urge-dot-to-adopt-vision-zero-policy/
“Our grandma wants to make the roads safer.” Remembering 2 girls in the aftermath of a truck crash https://annaleahmary.com/2015/11/our-grandma-wants-to-make-the-roads-safer-remembering-2-girls-in-the-aftermath-of-a-truck-crash/
Losing someone is hard. Losing a child is very hard. Losing a child unexpectedly due to a traumatic event is excruciating. Losing a child unexpectedly due to a traumatic event, which you later find out was quite possibly preventable, is devastating. Losing two children unexpectedly due to a traumatic event, which you later find out was quite possibly preventable, is beyond description.
(Please note: I am not trying to compare losses or saying that one is greater than another. I am just trying to help you understand what I have faced in trying to cope with my own losses.)
Which is why I really appreciated a link shared by a friend last week. It was written by a mother who had lost her son and shares what she has learned about that kind of grief. If you want to get a glimpse of what my life is now like, please read it (or for whatever reason because I hope that it helps many people–both those grieving and those who come alongside them):
What I Wish More People Understood About Losing A Child
Paula Stephens, the author of that article, talks about these things related to such a loss:
“Grief is the pendulum swing of love. The stronger and deeper the love the more grief will be created on the other side. Consider it a sacred opportunity to stand shoulder to shoulder with someone who has endured one of life’s most frightening events. Rise up with us.”
In case you hadn’t already figured it out about me, I have become obsessive with advocating for safer roads because I will do all within my power to stop these senseless tragedies. How I wish that ours had been prevented!
And I am obsessive about preserving memories of AnnaLeah and Mary. I hate that their lives are frozen in time while the rest of us go on. That wasn’t the way it was supposed to be. So, it isn’t that I am putting them on a pedestal; I just want them to still be a part of my life–one way or another.
And, if it seems like I’m not handling it very well, ask yourself how you would be doing if you were in my shoes. I hope that you never are.
Here is what I wrote about this topic not too long ago: https://annaleahmary.com/2015/05/how-a-truck-crash-changed-the-month-of-may-or-what-happens-when-nobody-takes-responsibility/
By the way, my friend who shared that link with me, Lauri Drosendahl, only knew our family for six months before the crash that took Mary and AnnaLeah–from November 1, 2012 — May 4, 2013. But, because our two families spent lots of quality time together during those six months, and were our church family, they were and have been a lifeline to hold us up. Along with countless others.
Here you see Lauri’s family with AnnaLeah and Mary (Mary is filming the fun and you can hear her laughing and see AnnaLeah laughing):
Lauri walked with me through the sewing of Rebekah’s wedding dress–with Mary as my model at each step along the way. https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.475812149167971.1073741844.464993830249803&type=1
Lauri’s husband, John, preached the sermon at their second funeral in Grand Rapids, Michigan.
Before:
Mary & Leah–a sleepover in Rocky Mount
After the funeral:
The Drosendahls at Woods on the Lake.
And Lauri was the inspiration for my completing the first of two quilts with squares from the girls’ clothes.
Remembering Mary & AnnaLeah in a Patchwork Quilt of Memories
I think that I am forever changed. I hope you all understand.
“Basically controlling risk during crashes is an energy-management problem. Our knowledge and understanding of energy management today is a lot better than it was in 1998. And in 1998, it was a lot better than it was in 1988.”
–DEAN SICKING
Read more here: http://www.nascar.com/en_us/news-media/articles/2011/02/16/nascar-safety-history.html
Let’s give Dean the chance to apply his expertise in NASCAR safety technology to improving truck underride protection: https://www.fortrucksafety.com/
Dean’s Underride Research Proposal: Development of Trailer Underride Preventive Measures
Printable & clickable brochure: ALMFTS Underride Guard Research Brochure
IIHS Report on truck underride crash tests and our story: IIHS Status Report October 2014
Listen to the discussion of Dean Sicking’s SAFER Barrier at Daytona, DAYTONA TO RING ENTIRE TRACK WITH SAFER BARRIER :
For more information about AnnaLeah & Mary’s story and for details about the underride guard issue, go to: https://annaleahmary.com/underride-guards/
Our family will be delivering the almost 16,000 Vision Zero petition signatures to Washington, D.C., on Friday, March 4, 2016. At that time, we will meet with Department of Transportation policy officials to discuss our concerns and requests.
One month from now, when we head out to D.C. , we will be closing the petition. Before that happens, please help us to get as many signatures as possible.
Please sign (if you have not yet done so) and share the petition in every way you can: http://www.thepetitionsite.com/417/742/234/save-lives-not-dollars-urge-dot-to-adopt-vision-zero-policy/
The Vision Zero Petition Book will contain the almost 16,000 petition signatures & all comments. It will be delivered in print form and also available digitally.
Together we can call for
a National Vision Zero Goal: Towards Zero Crash Deaths & Serious Injuries!
I saw an electronic sign above the expressway today–informing me of a crash 7 miles ahead & warning me to stay alert.
Could such a sign — if only it had been placed on I-20 on May 4, 2013 — have alerted a certain truck driver to PAY ATTENTION , notice how the traffic had slowed down due to a crash ahead, and not hit our car?!
Vision Zero is about embracing a VISION and making a STATEMENT which would lead to decision after decision, action after action — all leading to safer conditions and choices and circumstances designed to SAVE LIVES.
This simple thing could have made all the difference in the world for AnnaLeah & Mary.
Could Electronic Traffic Message Signs Have Saved My Daughters From Tragic Death? https://annaleahmary.com/2015/01/could-electronic-traffic-message-signs-have-saved-my-daughters-from-tragic-death/
PHOTOS taken by Mary Lydia Karth on the day of our trip, May 4, 2013:
10:52 a.m. 10:41 a.m.
12:49 p.m. 11:05 a.m.
Photos taken by the Georgia State Patrol, May 4, 2013:
3:30 p.m. 3:31 p.m.
A prayer written by Mary Lydia Karth (age 13), Spring 2013
August 6, 1999 — May 8, 2013
Thanks to the wonders of modern technology, I was able to watch a live-stream press conference yesterday from the comfort of my home. As a result, I was enlightened about the STATE OF SAFETY in our country. We are acting like the individually-united states are just that–individual. Acting like they need to have control over decisions about what SAFETY measures should be required in their individual states.
In disregard of the abundantly-available wonders of modern safety technology, what we are really doing is increasing the likelihood that INDIVIDUALS in their states will experience DEATH BY MOTOR VEHICLE!
Advocates for Highway & Auto Safety held a press conference yesterday at which they released their 13th annual Roadmap of State Highway Safety Laws–outlining the 319 proven safety laws which many states have not adopted, including such things as seat belt usage, motorcycle helmet laws, impaired driving, child passenger safety, teen graduated licensing laws, and distracted driving.
I was alerted to the upcoming event by Lou Lombardo of Care for Crash Victims. He sent out this notice:
Report to be released tomorrow from Advocates for Highway and Auto Safety titled “Missing”.
Missing refers to State Safety Laws missing in each State.
Buried in the State summaries are statistics on the number of people who died of crash injuries in each State for the past 10 years. Add them up and we find that 362,532 Americans are “missing” i.e., lost their lives due to vehicle violence over the 10 year period.
Using NHTSA figures of estimated injuries nearly 1.5 million additional people suffered serious injuries in America over the 10 year period. These people are also “missing” – i.e., not counted.
Using DOT values of $9 million in comprehensive costs per fatality, America “missing” losses would be valued by DOT to be about $3 trillion.
http://saferoads.org/roadmaps/
Why would we think that proven safety measures should be left up to the individual states to determine whether or not to require their use? Is this a matter of personal freedom? Do we think that we are trampling on citizens’ individual rights? Do we think that we need to give them CHOICE in this matter?
Do we need to let individuals become informed and make their own decisions on what would or would not be a good idea for them? Would their choice impact only them and them alone? Is that really what we think and how we choose to govern our country?
Is it the duty of the federal government to protect its citizens from crash deaths & serious injuries? I happen to think so: https://annaleahmary.com/2016/01/is-it-the-duty-of-the-federal-government-to-protect-its-citizens-from-crash-deaths-serious-injuries/.
And if that is, in fact, the case, then why not establish national safety standards and require them to be adopted by states? I know, from the aftermath of our crash, that there are already certain federal highway safety standards which states are required to adopt as is.
For an example of this, see FMCSA’s COMPATIBILITY OF STATE LAWS AND REGULATIONS AFFECTING INTERSTATE MOTOR CARRIER OPERATIONS https://www.fmcsa.dot.gov/regulations/title49/part/355.
Why not do the same for all of those 319 proven SAFETY LAWS alluded to by Advocates for Highway & Auto Safety? Mandate that all states adopt them as well. Why have each state struggle to re-invent the wheel and wade through all of the research (or try to do the research themselves) when we could gather all of the resources needed to design SAFETY Laws at the national level?
See how we are doing that kind of collaborative effort to obtain the best possible truck underride protection:
Save the Date: Truck Underride Roundtable at IIHS! https://t.co/jukbONi6D0 pic.twitter.com/keQLuRVnN1
— Marianne Karth (@MaryandAnnaLeah) January 21, 2016
To not do so is to cause untold delays in bringing about SAFER travel on our roads. In my estimation, to continue to travel down this road of Individual State Safety Laws, is to knowingly sentence to DEATH BY MOTOR VEHICLE countless members of our families and communities today and in all the days to come. That is plain and simple criminal negligence.
Reckless Driving & Criminal Injustice: One More Grief For Victims to Bear
And, on top of what I have already said, I would like to add that once safety measures are mandated, then I think that there should be criminal penalties for not adhering to those laws. There should be fines for violation of traffic safety laws. And, if breaking those laws leads to death or serious injury, then the lawbreaker should be held accountable, charged with RECKLESS criminal action, and receive appropriate consequences.
I am no legal expert and cannot begin to delineate exactly how it should be handled. But when I looked up the word reckless, I found reference to the term reckless endangerment , which has been described like this:
In Tennessee, a person may be convicted of the crime of Reckless Endangerment if the state prosecutor proves beyond a reasonable doubt that the person:
The term reckless, as it is used here, means that a person was aware of, but consciously disregarded, a substantial and unjustifiable risk that his conduct would place another person in imminent danger of death or serious bodily injury.
Just yesterday, I saw an example of car owners choosing to not use a safety measure–lane departure warning devices, which apparently can be quite annoying (a glitch which could quite probably be remedied). If use of this safety technology becomes mandated, then those who choose to disregard the law should be charged with any resulting DEATH BY MOTOR VEHICLE.
Deemed annoying, drivers may be turning off lane departure warning systems. https://t.co/Sj6UuyGS33 pic.twitter.com/rZtUDLwUGp
— IIHS (@IIHS_autosafety) January 28, 2016
If all US vehicles had front crash prevention, 300,000 injuries could have been prevented in 2013. pic.twitter.com/8vqNFuUIlp
— IIHS (@IIHS_autosafety) January 29, 2016
And, while we are at it, let’s inform and train our citizens from an early age that a vehicle is not a toy and that their driving behavior impacts those around them big time: https://www.facebook.com/EndDistractedDrving/photos/a.316429631751037.73716.141583792568956/994168863977107/?type=3&fref=nf. We should take a clue from a Jimmy Stewart-narrated 1954 driver safety film:
This, of course, brings up the need to have automakers provide safety devices as standard not optional equipment–at an affordable price for all. And for older vehicles, offer discounts for retrofitting them where possible:
How about a discount on my auto insurance if my car has this tech? Is that 2 much 2 ask? How about it, IIHS? https://t.co/EoEVoj8sMD
— Roger C Lanctot (@rogermud) January 28, 2016
Why am I being so vocal about this issue? Because I do not want thousands upon thousands of family members to receive death certificates in the mail for loved ones whose deaths could have been prevented by this country acting in a timely and morally responsible manner.
This issue of mandating national traffic safety standards to be adopted by states adds one more practical application to my recommendations for a National Vision Zero Goal and Vision Zero Executive Order.
Check out the details of our Vision Zero Petitions here: https://annaleahmary.com/2016/01/adopt-a-national-vision-zero-goal-save-lives-not-dollars/
Maybe I need to get going and launch a new petition calling for federal safety laws to be adopted by all states–including proven means for moving Towards Zero Crash Deaths & Serious Injuries and in a timely manner. https://www.fmcsa.dot.gov/regulations/title49/section/350.107 & http://www.statesman.com/news/news/local/after-deadly-traffic-year-austin-to-join-national-/nqCgq/
To do so would be honoring the memory of not only our daughters, AnnaLeah (forever 17) and Mary (13) who died due to a potentially-preventable truck underride crash, but also my ancestor, Resolved Waldron, who came to New Amsterdam in 1654, established a home on Broadway near Wall Street http://tinyurl.com/hlpu2mx, and “His conscientious exactness in performing his duties [as deputy sheriff] made him a favorite with Governor Stuyvesant.” http://www.eroots.net/docs/Waldron%20public.pdf May we always be a nation diligent to protect our citizens.
Jeremy Finley, Investigative Reporter from Nashville, Tennessee, sheds light on the problem with NHTSA’s proposed rule for underride guards on tractor-trailers. He discusses our crash.
Posted: Jan 21, 2016 6:32 PM EST
Read about it here:
Could someone please explain to me why it is that we can invent amazing technology to allow “face time” — among countless other inventions which are unfolding at an unbelievable pace — but we are slow as a snail to solve safety problems.
Why are we not devoting top priority resources (time, money, and the creativity of the human mind — enhanced by the availability of information and technology) to reducing the 33,000 on average annual traffic crash fatalities in the U.S. and 1.24 million crash deaths on the world’s roads in 2010? http://www.who.int/gho/road_safety/mortality/en/
And why is it that getting safety measures passed — whether it be at the legislative level (in getting laws passed) or the administrative level (in getting regulations issued) is a continual battle?
Let me tell you what I think might be some of the reasons:
What is the result of all this? People are dying when they could be still living. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6LGcWc4m9VA
Too many lives are sacrificed. And for what? “So, what cost-benefit analyses really means, is that when no action is taken to improve the design of heavy vehicles, people’s lives are being traded for reduced transport costs.” George Rechnitzer, https://annaleahmary.com/2015/06/crocodile-tears-costbenefit-analysis-vision-zero-goal-of-no-crash-fatalities/
Now, back to my original question, why is it that we can invent amazing technology to allow “face time” — among countless other inventions which are unfolding at an unbelievable pace — but we are slow as a snail to solve safety problems?
My grandpa was a rural mailman and used a sleigh and horses to deliver mail in the snow. My dad grew up with a wood-burning stove and an icebox for refrigeration. I grew up with the introduction of color television, seat belts, and not until I started raising children did I use things like VCRs or modem dial-up internet access. I went to Europe for a summer in college and had no cell phone to keep in contact with my parents back in the U.S.
Aren’t you glad that we have indoor plumbing? https://annaleahmary.com/2015/06/the-future-of-trucking-who-pays-for-the-costs-of-safer-roads/
How far we have come technologically and how rapidly advances occur. Yet, it takes a Jayne Mansfield (http://mentalfloss.com/article/28155/how-jayne-mansfield-changed-design-tractor-trailers & http://www.thecarconnection.com/news/1082934_iihs-todays-mansfield-bars-dont-work-so-well-video) or a Dale Earnhardt to die (http://espn.go.com/rpm/nascar/cup/columns/story?columnist=hinton_ed&id=6116145 & http://sports.usatoday.com/2015/04/30/dean-sicking-safer-barriers-nascar-indycar/) or a Tracy Morgan to get severely injured for us to wake up and decide to do something about safety. http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-08-11/ntsb-says-wal-mart-driver-awake-for-28-hours-before-morgan-crash
https://annaleahmary.com/2015/03/too-often-too-little-too-late-a-conspiracy-of-silence/
Don’t get me wrong, I am thankful for the safety advances made after those famous crashes. But I am appalled that we can’t seem to get it until such tragedies cause us to sit up and take notice. Meanwhile, countless unnoticed-by-the-public tragedies happen daily on roads across the globe. Year after year.
Good grief! Even my grandkids, who have not yet lived a decade, get that something could have been done to prevent their Aunt Mary (13) and Aunt AnnaLeah (17) from dying. https://annaleahmary.com/2015/11/our-grandma-wants-to-make-the-roads-safer-remembering-2-girls-in-the-aftermath-of-a-truck-crash/
That is why I am devoting myself to raising awareness and calling for change. Come on people, let’s set a National Vision Zero Goal and use our vast resources and brilliant minds to slay this giant. Let’s not keep on putting our heads in the sand, putting bandaids on the problems, and losing these battles at the price of our loved ones. We can do it!
My family and I are making plans to head back to Washington, DC, very soon to take our Vision Zero petitions. We will be meeting with DOT officials to discuss these matters and hopefully lay the foundation for Obama to write a Vision Zero Executive Order. https://annaleahmary.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/Vision-Zero-Executive-Order-Petition-Letter-to-President-Obama1.pdf & https://annaleahmary.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/Executive-Order-Draft-Application-of-Vision-Zero-Principles-to-Highway-Safety-Regulatory-Review.pdf
Stand up with us and make this happen. Sign & share our 2 Vision Zero petitions:
Secretary Anthony Foxx & Marianne Karth discuss truck safety, September 12, 2013
p.s. By the way, the inventor of the NASCAR SAFER Barrier which is now saving lives, thinks that he can invent a much safer truck underride protection system. We just need the money to prove it: https://www.fortrucksafety.com/
