(Note: This article appears on the Care for Crash Victims website http://www.careforcrashvictims.com/update1-rollovercrash.php
This is to update my recent blog on this subject.
Investigative reporters and a group of powerfully persistent citizens led by two aggrieved moms that lost sons in Van crashes in Canada are pushing for greater safety.
A Canadian group called VanAngels has been documenting the safety needs and potential policy changes for greater safety at www.vanangels.ca. This is an admirable effort and resource for safety advocates.
They provided the following:
Transport Canada's public website with the summarized results of the 2 year 15-passenger van safety review and testing.
http://www.tc.gc.ca/eng/roadsafety/tp-tp2436-rs200808-p5-1211.htm
Refer to page 65 of the following report "Evaluation of 15-Passenger Vans" by the Canadian Council of Motor Transport Administrators (CCMTA) which was released in January 2013 as a follow-up to Transport Canada's Safety Review. It will give the make and year of the vans up until 2009.
http://www.ccmta.ca/english/pdf/CCMTA%20Evaluation%20of%2015-Passenger%20Vans%202013%202%2022%201138a.pdf
Our Van Angels group had pressured for the Safety Review and also a 'national approach' to the safety issues concerning 15-passenger van use in Canada. The CCMTA's response to a national educational campaign was to create a guideline brochure which is to be sent out to every registered 15-passenger van owner in Canada. There is nothing new in this brochure that hasn't already been said years before! It also puts the onus of responsibility onto the owners and drivers thereby deflecting any accountability from industry and government!
http://www.ccmta.ca/english/pdf/CCMTA-15pGuidelines-ENG.pdf
In the U.S. the Center for Auto Safety is examining the matter and Clarence Ditlow tells us:
Safety inspections would catch worn tires which can easily trigger a rollover when they fail in use.
This church van obviously had severe roof crush. Sadly, NHTSA's new roof crush standard which doubles the force applied to the roof to 3 times the vehicle's weight & requires each side to be sequentially subjected the 3 times the vehicle's weight does not apply to vehicles with a GVWR above 10,000 pounds which would exempt 15-passenger vans. (I am attaching the FR notice on the final rule).
This is the most recent survey I can find of state laws. This report focuses on public school transportation http://www.nasdpts.org/documents/vanssurveyfeb04.pdf
It is from 2004 so most likely outdated, but it does give a good overview of state laws. It looks like a majority of states have laws prohibiting transport in 15 passenger vans to/from school and school activities. However, very few states have applied the law to private schools and churches.
See Roof Crush Rule promulgated by NHTSA during early days of Obama Administration attached.
Additional NHTSA Report 809735 is attached along with an informative Public Citizen Report.
Previous Blog Post: Dear Care for Crash Victims Community Members:
Another tragic fatal rollover reported:
http://www.news-press.com/article/20130915/NEWS0108/130915010/Church-van-rollover-update-Two-more-died
NHTSA issued a press release warning earlier this year:
http://www.nhtsa.gov/About+NHTSA/Press+Releases/Consumer+Advisory:+NHTSA+Reminds+Drivers+of+15-Passenger+Vans+to+Guard+Against+Rollover+Crashes+During+the+Warm-Weather+Driving+Season
and a decade ago there were Pubic Citizen warnings:
http://www.citizen.org/autosafety/passengervan/
When will we ever learn?
Press releases are not enough.
NHTSA has many powers of investigation, recall, rulemaking, research, publicity, and public education.
We really can and must do better protecting the American people.
If people want an insight into how government came to fail protecting the American people, I recommend reading the Nixon tape of the conversation with Henry Ford II and Lee Iaccoca also attached. Nixon stated: "It's true in, in the environmentalists and it's true of the consumerism people. They're a group of people that aren't one really damn bit interested in safety or clean air. What they're interested in is destroying the system. They're enemies of the system."
As one who was fired by EPA under Nixon, I don't think of myself or these moms as enemies of the system. Readers can see more on my work in the 1970s at my web site. Of course, I was not privy to the conversation at the White House back then. But I still believe we can do better protecting people from pollution and crashes.
Documents Attached:
002007 The National Archives, Nixon Transcriptions-1
Analysis of Crashes Involving 15 Passenger Vans
Stopping Rollover
Roof Crush Final Rule
