The Regulation of Motor Vehicle and Traffic Safety

ISBN-13: 9780898382808 / Angielski / Twarda / 1988 / 138 str.

Glenn C. Blomquist

Opis

Decisions twenty years ago during the fIrst generation of modern traffIc safety policymaking were easier than today. Afterall, the mandate for specifIc mandatory motor vehicle safety standards was dermed rather clearly during legislative hearings. Since the initial standards, decisions have been based on the more general guidelines of "practicality" and avoiding "unreasonable risks. " Now, with more diffIcult decisions pending, the demand for analysis is greater. My purpose in writing this book is to promote second generation policymaking in traffic safety. The dominant theme is that an "individual net benefIt approach" is useful in the design, evaluation and improvement of traffic safety policy. Hopefully, this book provides some guidance for today's tougher decisions. Evaluative review of modern traffic safety policy, especially automobile safety standards, yields several results. The technological approach, the basis for the 1966 legislation, is shown to produce mistakes. Benefits are overestimated and endangerment of nonoccupants is ignored. The risk homeostatic approach, the devil's idea to some in the safety community, is shown to be a limiting case of the more general individual net benefIt approach. Rationality and competency in travelers' safety decisions are reviewed in a broad context. Evidence beyond the realm of behavioral ix x The Regulation of Motor Vehicle and Traffic Safety psychology indicates considerable, albeit imperfect, competency in traffic safety decisions. Conventional benefit-cost analysis is critiqued. Existing studies of passive restraints are shown to overestimate net benefits because travelers' responses and costs are ignored.

Spis treści

1: The Motor Vehicle and Traffic Safety Mandate.- Fatalities in Traffic Accidents—Trends and Incidence.- Early Congressional Hearings on Traffic Safety.- The Traffic Safety Acts of 1966.- The National Traffic and Motor Vehicle Safety Act of 1966.- The Highway Safety Act of 1966.- Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards.- Standards for Highway Safety Programs.- Other Safety Activities.- Research.- The Motor Vehicle Information and Cost Savings Act of 1972.- Recalls.- Perspectives.- Notes.- 2: A Framework for Thinking About Traffic Safety Policy.- The Nature of the Mandate.- The Technological Approach.- The Risk Homeostatic Approach.- A General Framework: The Individual Benefit-Cost Approach.- The Individual Benefit-Cost Approach.- Implications for Traffic Safety Policy.- Potential Imperfections in Motorist Decisions: Types and Evidence.- Insufficient Incentives.- Insufficient Information.- Insufficient Competency.- Evidence of Competence.- Traffic Safety Problems: A Matter of Degree.- An Assessment of the Evidence.- An Assessment of Demands for More Aggressive Safety Policy.- Traffic Safety Policy.- Notes.- Appendix: Mathmatical Exposition of the Individual Benefit-Cost Approach.- 3: The Contribution of Vehicle Safety Standards to Traffic Safety.- Changes in Traffic Fatality Rates.- Evidence on the Safety Effects.- The Initial Technological Predictions.- The Initial Evidence Based on Fatality Rates—Peltzman.- Evidence Based on Accident Severity Rate—GAO.- Rebuttal to Peltzman’s Findings—Robertson and Joksch.- Evidence Based on Crash Involvement Rates—Robertson and Orr.- Recent Evidence Based on Fatality Rate Analysis—Seven Studies.- Interpreting the Evidence.- Safety Impacts of Vehicle Safety Standards—Conclusions.- Risk Compensation.- Policy Evaluation and A Framework for Thinking.- Notes.- 4: Economics of Mandatory Passive Restraints: Benefit-Cost Analysis, Rulemaking and Court Decisions.- Background for Crash Protection Rules and Court Decisions.- Benefit—Cost Studies of Mandatory Passive Restraints.- An Ideal Study.- Arnould and Grabowski.- Graham, Henrion and Morgan.- Final Regulatory Impact Analysis by NHTSA.- Nordhaus’ Revision of NHTSA’s Analysis.- Critique of the Benefit-Cost Analysis.- Accident Chances are Assumed Constant-No Human Response.- Substitutability Among Policy Components.- Implicit User Costs—Another Human Factor.- Perspective on Regulatory and Legal Decisions.- Recission and the Courts.- Legal Decisions, Regulatory Decisions and Economic Analysis.- Judging Analytical Acceptability—Five Criteria.- The Dole Rule—Economic Critique of the Current Standard.- Judging the Passive Restaints Rule Based on the Five Criteria for Analytical Acceptability.- Notes.- 5: Improving Traffic Safety Policy.- Immediate Causes of Imperfections.- Nonmarket Failure: An Obstacle to Policy Perfection.- Correcting Policy Imperfections with a Better Framework.- Risk Free Travel.- Inducements and Information—Nonregulatory Alternatives.- Inducements for Greater Safety.- Information and Inducements—Recalls.- Bottom-Line Evaluation.- Mystery Plunge.- Notes.- 6: Summary Remarks and Recommendations.- Summary Remarks.- Recommendations for Improving Traffic Safety Policy.- Task Force and Committee on Traffic Safety Policy and Implementation.- A General Framework for Traffic Safety.- Regulatory Impact Analysis Based on a General Framework.- Field Testing for Proposed Safety Measures.- Bottom-Line Evaluation.- List of Tables And Figures Table 1-1 Causes of Death, 1984.- Table 1–2 Incidence of Motor Vehicle Fatalities, by Age Group.- Table 1–3 Traffic Fatalities and Fatality Rates, 1947–1986.- Figure 1–1 Annual Traffic Fatalities and Fatality Rates, 1947–1986.- Table 1–4 Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards.- Table 1–5 Standards for Highway Safety Programs.- Table 2–1 Representative Evidence on the Individual Benefit Cost Approach.- Table 3–1 Impact of Vehicle Safety Standards on Traffic Fatality Rates and Lives Saved.- Table 4–1 Benefit-Cost Studies of Mandatory Passive Restraints.- Table 5–1 Ranking of National Problems.