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out by ho8tlle8. Aft€r the sudden rald<br />
we #e cnmpled, mutllilted bodles ot<br />
wlves <strong>and</strong> chlldftn strem about. One<br />
asks hlmself why the heacl ol e famlly,<br />
knowlng the rLsk, woutd subject ruE tamlly<br />
to the dBn8ers Inherent tn l$otEted<br />
lrontler llvlns. But fof sme reaaon the<br />
same leellng hbs not Elways occurred to<br />
me when my netghbor piles hls famlly,<br />
pIuB B few extres, lnto hls statlon wa8on<br />
<strong>and</strong> drlves otr. Stst 6tics End horrlble<br />
exmples lndlcsta that I Ehould feel the<br />
Barne Bnd should vlsuallze e sudden horrendous<br />
lncldent whtch leBves t&ern all<br />
alesd ot lnjufed. Such ls the posslblUty<br />
whlte llvlng In a hotorlzeal Ese whlch ha^s<br />
not s yet dem<strong>and</strong>ed rslety meagurel<br />
comneneurete wlttr lta dengere.<br />
I dncEroly hope thrt tlc hrrnlrw polDt<br />
of thE Blety vEi l|ltr b|| ben ftf,c.hGal.<br />
BlUt b€lot€ Congrctl trhould ruverrc the<br />
kcnd, Nothlng vlll gulckly md drr-<br />
Eatlcauy solvG tlrc problem. No flaA ol<br />
truc€ can suddenly re8ult ln I c€edcflrE.<br />
Dolns er€rytlrlng ptrslble, we ca$ only<br />
hopc to ree r grudual change. Ttrla lr<br />
cautrd by the extremev mmpler nttlE<br />
ol the thtng8 neederl to be done <strong>and</strong> the<br />
Erldltlonal Bubjccdve clcdcnt BuF,plled<br />
by publlc resctlon <strong>and</strong> hrunsn nature.<br />
CorutltSlonal acuon her taken two<br />
Epprmchet atld two llner of rttrck on<br />
the problemr Involved beceuse o! thesd<br />
compllestloni. E€yeral factors muEt, b€<br />
kept lh ltdltnc€ md rcversl lacts ot llfe<br />
must be teoognlzed In copln8 wlth lhe<br />
Bltuatlon.<br />
Flrst ol EIl, the Federel Clovenunent<br />
cannot b€ tfie end-Bll. We must remernb€t<br />
thgt roads Bre bullt In the Stet€! End<br />
tfte lomlltlac. IdwB &re enlorced there.<br />
CErE Bre drlven there. Hop€fully, they<br />
Bre lrrspect4d there. Ttrerc mEt be reallstlc<br />
balanee between trb$olutc Eafety<br />
8nd freedom to w vehlcleS End the<br />
roadg_<br />
Jt posible, *,e uant flrst, ot Bll to cut<br />
the f,ccldent r{.t€ td B mirilmum-ln<br />
other wortls, k6qp the accldent from<br />
heptlrnln8. Thet ls dotrc by starl,in8<br />
wlth e Eafe car to be uscd on safe hlghweys<br />
by a sate drlver Buialed by adequate<br />
trsfrc mntrol devlces end subject to<br />
prop€r enforcement 0f the lBwE.<br />
Krnwlng the realltles ol llte we BlEo<br />
know th{tt no such utoplB wlll b€ forthcomlng<br />
Bnd thal, sccldents wlll contlnue<br />
tohappen. TtBi belnB the cese, we need<br />
to mlnlmlt€ the dmage to llfe d.ttd limb<br />
whlch T'llI b€ cflusd by thc second col'<br />
lklopthst of the occupant wlth hls<br />
own vehlcle. Obviously, this ls where<br />
new Cf.r stsndgrds flt the picture <strong>and</strong><br />
thls ls primarily whBt H.Ii. I3t28, the<br />
NBtlonal Tnfrc End Motor Vehlcle<br />
Eofety Act ol 19d6, lE mebnt to provtde.<br />
By thls I mffin more adequate st<strong>and</strong>arde<br />
of performance {ot rrew csrs,<br />
As rapirlly ns poslble, ell known s8fety<br />
devlces rnd fertures wlll b€ ltlcorporflted<br />
lnto new automobiles aB they come from<br />
the sssembly lirEs. Then, eB new <strong>and</strong><br />
better sy8tems <strong>and</strong> devlces f,re developed,<br />
elther by the automobile lndustry lt8€lt,<br />
the equlpment rnanuf&cturers, or by regeErch<br />
trnd exlFrident suppofted by<br />
prlvate or government sources, thos devlc{s<br />
wlll become pBrt of the expected<br />
st<strong>and</strong>srd for leter models.<br />
The Federal Government ls a buyer<br />
ol Eutomoblle$ ln large numb€rq. <strong>and</strong> In<br />
House Debate<br />
.r-\<br />
the last U years lt, hEs been looklng very<br />
crltlcelly at its own requlremenLs wlth<br />
a vlew to buylng cars equlpped as Eafely<br />
a$ pre3ent, technolocy wlll permtt. ThEt,<br />
lncldentally, ls a complete Bwlich lrom<br />
the lormer practlce ol buylns the barest<br />
66{sls produced. Even b€fore H.R.<br />
13?28 becomes l&w. tlre General seillc€s<br />
AalmlnlstrBtlon ls upddttnc lta requtrements<br />
further ln order to have ln belng<br />
the lrrst stBndff,rds pos3lble Es hltlEl<br />
Et<strong>and</strong>srds under the new le8lslBtlon. In<br />
thls way such Bt8nd"ards can afiect Butomoblles<br />
dellverod to the publlc<br />
B ye8r ffiner tfien otherrrlee.<br />
et least<br />
But FhBt doc6 the blu llo to E"atc flfl<br />
r*fer for I'ou? rt rllrwte ttrc Sccttt rt<br />
of Coonercr to atnbtlrb drDdsfi lil<br />
new BE whlch wlll mal,e thcm r| sdc<br />
66 posslble corlslstent wlth common$€nlf<br />
<strong>and</strong> the realltles ol ruto rnrnulsEturtnS'<br />
rt ls not the lnt€ntlon to deprtve the publlc<br />
of ceru by hgklns thear lflordlnrt€ly<br />
exp€nslve or outlnwlnE typee <strong>and</strong> modelr'<br />
n tlt lllt€nded to put ln them b€tter rrrd<br />
btttdr ssfety lestures whlch wlll mrlc<br />
them leBs 8Ft to be lnvolved in accident!<br />
<strong>and</strong> less Bpt to lnjure<br />
when they Bre.<br />
occup8nts ll sttd<br />
so Etsndf,rds wlll be mt Bnd th€n<br />
amended End revl8ed ffi knowled8e grdryl'<br />
In the course ot e8tabllshlnEr thc stentluds,<br />
the <strong>Sec</strong>retary of Commerce wlll<br />
have Bt hls dlspo88l a aafety Edvl8drt<br />
councll made up of thos€ best &ble to<br />
hclp htm, lncludlng the psple who bulld<br />
cars. tho8e who cr€Bte p8rt3 Bnd €qulp.<br />
ment. Md the Btats <strong>and</strong> lmalltlet.<br />
In H.E,. 13?28 <strong>and</strong> H.R. IoslLthe blU<br />
lntroduccd by me-sll motor vehlcleE,<br />
lncludlng prssengcr cnrs, trucks ol dl<br />
klnds End bu8ea, would be lncluded ln<br />
the stshdarus as rapldly as poB6lble.<br />
Thls ls e dltrerence from the blll p88scd<br />
by the othet My snd a Clsnlflcant onc.<br />
The other blll would exempt ell vehlcl€6<br />
subject t6 reFulfitldn by the fnt€rsist4<br />
Commerce Commlsslon. Here we h&ve<br />
unlformlty In manuf8cturlng, Bnd the<br />
ICc cBn requlre other deylces as lt flndr<br />
nec4ssflry lor truclG snd bu-c+g en8sacd<br />
ln speclflc toles of lnterstatr commercc.<br />
AIso tllfierent Bnd srldltlongl ln the<br />
Hous bllls are the provlslons lor the setttnB<br />
of st<strong>and</strong>Btds for used Brs whlch<br />
make up 80 mllllon of the 93 mllllon vehlcles<br />
on the roads todBy. F\fther ls<br />
the creetlon of a lilBttonEl ltEfrc Satety<br />
Agency wlthln the DepErtment ol Commerce<br />
heBded by s PreslclentlEl appolntee<br />
to unlfy md csffy out the varloug<br />
prograrn$ under thls Bnd other laws Bflectlnc<br />
ssfety.<br />
the overEll problem ol trafnc<br />
Arlcl whet Bbout thffi who adtually<br />
bulld the new cBrFwhBt mu6t they do<br />
under thls blll?<br />
'I'aftlng Lhe st+ps In<br />
sftluence, the nrst thlnB they will do 16<br />
cooDcrate <strong>and</strong> ffilBt the Sffiret$ry of<br />
commerce itr his dellberBtlons Bnd declslons<br />
ebout senslble, prEctlcel safetv<br />
st8nderds. They will not, dornlnate lhis<br />
edtlvlty. but they wlll contribute. Then,<br />
ot couffi, they must atlhere to the stsndards<br />
when mtunlly building productlon<br />
ulodcls, Hsvlnc bullt one, the m6nufaoturer<br />
must plsce B certlncate ln a p€manent<br />
fL$hlon whlch lndlcates thst tlre<br />
vehlcle does ln f8ct measure up to fhe<br />
stsndsrds ln effect when lt was bullt.<br />
719
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