With pedestrian fatalities mounting, regulators propose tougher vehicle design rules

WASHINGTON — The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is proposing new regulations for vehicle design intended to reduce the number of pedestrians killed and seriously injured in crashes on U.S. roads.

The proposal announced Monday comes as the number of annual pedestrian deaths is up more than 75% since reaching its lowest point in 2009.

“We have a crisis of roadway deaths, and it’s even worse among vulnerable road users like pedestrians,” said Sophie Shulman, NHTSA’s deputy administrator, in a statement announcing the proposed regulation. “This proposed rule will ensure that vehicles will be designed to protect those inside and outside from serious injury or death.”

Regulators say their proposal would establish new test procedures that simulate a head-to-hood impact, along with performance requirements to minimize the risk of head injury. The agency estimates that could save 67 lives each year.

Safety advocates have often criticized NHTSA for moving too slowly to prospect pedestrians and other vulnerable road users. But some of the agency’s toughest critics praised its latest proposal, which would harmonize federal vehicle safety standards with global standards.

“It will bring American standards more in line with global leaders in Europe and Asia, who in many cases have traffic fatality rates that are a fraction of ours,” said Angie Schmitt, the author of Right of Way: Race, Class, and the Silent Epidemic of Pedestrian Deaths in America.

Lawmakers in Congress introduced a bill last month that would require federal standards for hood height and visibility to protect pedestrians and other vulnerable road users.

Traffic and pedestrian fatalities in the U.S. climbed sharply for over a decade before leveling off last year. The reasons for that rise are complicated, and likely include road and sidewalk design, an increase in speeding and a corresponding decline in law enforcement, as well as the growing size and weight of vehicles.

Safety advocates argue that vehicle design also plays an important role. Vehicles with higher front ends and blunt profiles are 45% more likely to cause fatalities in crashes with pedestrians than smaller cars and trucks, according to a study of real-world crashes by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety.

The president of IIHS, David Harkey, said the group is “pleased to see NHTSA taking this step toward mandating vehicle designs that are less dangerous to pedestrians. This move is in line with recommendations that IIHS has made to NHTSA in the past to ensure that every new vehicle comes with baseline protection for pedestrians in the event of a crash.”

But the auto industry may not be so welcoming. The Alliance for Automotive Innovation, an auto industry trade group, says it is still reviewing the 200-page proposal that NHTSA unveiled Monday.

“Safety is a top priority,” the trade group said in a statement. “Automakers have voluntarily developed and introduced many crash avoidance technologies to help make roads safer for pedestrians and road users. We provided input to NHTSA in the early stages of this process and will review the proposal released today.”

NHTSA will be accepting public comment on the proposed rule for the next 60 days.