Car Crash Safety : Your Government at Work

We often tend to think of private industry as the key driver in vehicle crash safety. The reality is that the United States Government devotes far greater resources to cutting edge safety research and the primary clearinghouse is the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration.

NHTSA tends to love abbreviations and today we examine the Vehicle Research and Test Center or VRTC.

VRTC is the frontline for exactly what its name implies, testing vehicles in an effort to reduce the frequency and severity of car and truck crashes.

The diversity of the topics examined by VRTC run the gamut from vehicle rollover (see http://www.maryland-law.com/blog/nhtsa-study-to-determine-effectiveness-of-rollover-prevention-in-eighteen-wheeler-and-commercial.cfm ) to so-called rear-end crash avoidance systems.

The number of available publications is staggering and a reflection of the broad efforts to reduce car crash injuries and wrongful deaths.

The areas of study are generally divided into "Heavy Vehicle Research Program", "National Advanced Driving Simulator", "Intelligent Transportation Systems Research", "Light Vehicle Stability Research" and the "NHTSA Light Vehicle ABS Research Program".