usatoday) - ARLINGTON, Va.—The Obama administration on Wednesday committed to a goal of eliminating traffic deaths within 30 years, setting a timeline for the first time on an ambitious agenda that relies heavily on the auto industry's development of self-driving cars.
The Department of Transportation's National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and other agencies committed to the objective after a sharp uptick in roadway deaths.
2015 marked the deadliest year on American roads since 2008, an unsettling revelation that renewed efforts to combat distracted driving and encourage the development of safety systems. In the first half of 2016, deaths spiked 10.4% to 17,775, compared to a year earlier, according to preliminary NHTSA estimatesreleased Wednesday.
"All of a sudden we're losing ground," NHTSA administrator Mark Rosekind said at an event in Arlington, Va. "We have an immediate crisis on our hands and we also have a long-term challenge."
Although U.S. auto-safety regulators had previously said their goal was to someday eliminate road fatalities altogether, Wednesday's announcement marks the first time they've identified a specific timeline. (FullText)
No comments:
Post a Comment