motor vehicle injury prevention

It has been 55 years since the National Traffic Safety & Motor Vehicle Safety Act of 1966 ushered in an era of improved safety. Imagine all of the technological changes which have occurred since then. Yet motor vehicle crashes are still a leading cause of death. Why is this so?

Despite this senseless loss of life, safety advocates struggle to catalyze significant change. Efforts to save lives are restricted by the ongoing political tug-of-war over infrastructure legislation. Is it time for a new comprehensive National Traffic Safety Act to pass as a stand-alone bill?

National Traffic Safety Act of 2021

National Traffic Safety Act of 2021 Brochure

Let’s not get stuck in same old/same old strategies. Think outside of the box and come together collaboratively to bring about sweeping changes. Victims of traffic tragedies — gone in the blink of an eye — never come back. Protect the people.

Just read a great article, Public Health’s Contribution to Motor Vehicle Injury Prevention, and sent an email off to the author, Dr. Patricia F. Waller — only to find that she died in 2003. Wish I could have met her and strategized with her.

Some excerpts:

The evidence on occupant restraints began accumulating
almost as soon as safety belts were first available
in passenger vehicles. As other nations enacted legislation
and belt usage rose, the data clearly showed the
life-saving effects. Even so, in this country little was
done to translate findings into legislation and enforcement.
Legislators were presented with what we in the
academic community considered convincing evidence,
and were told, “Is that all you have? I could never get
this out of committee!” It was easy to become
discouraged.
It was citizen action groups that provided the impetus
for major changes in public policy governing drinking
and driving. Their activities generated public support
for enforcement of existing laws and enactment of new
ones. Research findings were translated into laws and
programs.
Data alone were not sufficient to bring about major
changes in policies affecting individual behavior. Success
is attributable to a wide range of participants,
including legislative, enforcement, judicial, public
health, medical, and public organizations and advocates.
The individual and community actions that resulted were fostered by education, stimulated by social norms, and encouraged through public policy, and are
examples of the value of taking a health promotion
approach to motor vehicle injury prevention.
The CDC’s National Center for Injury Prevention and
Control is playing the major role in developing and
sustaining researchers in injury prevention—a role that
must clearly continue. The benefits to society from
the public investment in research and training in this
field are enormous in both human and monetary
terms. With over 41,000 deaths annually, motor vehicle
crashes remain a major preventable public health problem.
Implementation of the recommendations in this
supplement holds the promise of further reducing what
remains an unacceptable toll.