Between 2013 and 2022, the number of pedestrians killed by automobiles in the United States rose by 57 percent. One of the major causes of this spike was the rising popularity of trucks and SUVs, whose high hoodlines are more likely to inflict fatal injuries. But now, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is preparing to put its foot down by proposing the first set of pedestrian crash safety standards in U.S. history.
The proposal would modify the Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards (or FMVSS) by introducing test procedures that simulate head-hood impacts in crashes. These would be for passenger vehicles with a 10,000-pound Gross Vehicle Weight Rating (GWVR) or less, encompassing the vast majority of vehicles driven in fatal pedestrian impacts. It fulfills a mandate under the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law to bring U.S. car safety standards in line with international standards, predominantly European, which the NHTSA estimates will prevent 67 deaths per year.
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