National Highway Traffic Safety Administration

You often hear car manufacturers boast about a particular vehicle receiving a "five-star safety rating" in a crash test, but who issues such ratings? The answer is the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), a United States Department of Transportation agency. According to the NHTSA, its mission is to "save lives, prevent injuries, and reduce economic costs due to road traffic crashes, through education, research, safety standards, and enforcement activity." The NHTSA creates and enforces federal standards for car safety, fuel economy, and theft-resistance. Serving as both an investigatory organization and a source of information, the NHTSA has three primary responsibilities: research, education and information, and research funding. Read on to learn more about the history of the NHTSA and its role in keeping Americans safe out on the road.

History

The Highway Safety Act of 1970 created the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration as we know it today, but its history actually begins a few years prior to that legislation. The government created the NHTSA to assume the functions once managed by the National Highway Safety Bureau. The roots of the organization are partially tied to the National Traffic and Motor Vehicle Safety Act of 1966 and the Motor Vehicle Safety Act of 1966. Both pieces of legislation came in response to the public’s demand for safer vehicles, in part prompted by the work of consumer advocate Ralph Nader who wrote the groundbreaking book Unsafe at Any Speed.

Since the creation of the NHTSA, fatalities from motor-vehicle accidents have consistently declined and are now at their lowest in history. The NHTSA often makes headlines with its high-profile defect and recall investigations, such as the Ford Explorer rollover problem and, more recently, the Toyota unintended acceleration issue. Through it all, the NHTSA has remained committed to reducing the social and economic devastation related to road traffic accidents.

Research

The first responsibility of the NHTSA is related to research. For the typical American driver, this is where the NHTSA is most relevant and visible. The NHTSA performs crash tests on most new vehicles and then rates them with a five-star scoring system. These ratings are what you see in car advertisements, auto reviews, etc. One thing that few Americans know about the NHTSA is that it purchases its test vehicles right off the lot, just like a normal consumer, in order to prevent manufacturers from sending test vehicles that have been altered in some way. Because of this, the NHTSA can’t afford to crash test every car on the market, so the agency selects the most representative vehicles instead.

The crash-test program of the NHTSA involves front-impact and side-impact collision testing. The NHTSA also performs rollover tests on trucks and SUVs. Through its crash-test program and similar programs, the NHTSA serves a critical function as a car-safety watchdog. Additionally, the NHTSA is responsible for establishing and enforcing fuel economy standards and investigating vehicle manufacturer defects.

Information and Education

Aside from its research endeavors, the NHTSA also functions as a vehicle-safety information clearinghouse for the American public. Because the NHTSA is funded by tax dollars, it has a responsibility to work for the common good. For example, the NHTSA compiles accident statistics every year. The report the NHTSA publishes offers an overview of injuries, speeding, fatalities, and alcohol-related incidents. This annual report is viewed as the ultimate authority on Americans’ driving habits. The NHTSA also sponsors internal studies on teen driving programs, child safety seats, and new vehicle-safety technology to make the roads safer for American drivers.

Funding Additional Research

Finally, the NHTSA sponsors safety studies and offers grants to cities and states to enable them to perform their own vehicle-safety research. As evidenced by its mission statement, the NHTSA has the authority to bankroll related research projects. Moreover, several universities, such as the University of Iowa, get NHTSA and DOT grants to pay for numerous projects. For instance, the NHTSA funded the University of Iowa’s study on elderly drivers. The NHTSA also provides funding to groups like the AAA Foundation of Traffic Safety and similar non-educational research organizations for ongoing car-safety research.