NHTSA Chief to Address World Traffic Safety Symposium

NEW YORK, March 30 /PRNewswire/ -- Addressing road safety issues for the past 20 years, the 2010 World Traffic Safety Symposium is pleased to announce this year's keynote speaker, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) Administrator, David L. Strickland.

The Symposium's theme is "driver distraction" and will include a panel discussion featuring representatives from NHTSA, Virginia Tech University, and the automobile and wireless communications industries. The event takes place on April 9th at the New York International Auto Show, held at the Jacob Javits Convention Center in Manhattan.

Driver distraction presents a serious and deadly danger.

In 2008, 5,870 people lost their lives and an estimated 515,000 people were injured in police-reported crashes in which at least one form of driver distraction was reported on the police crash report in the U.S.  Distracted driving comes in various forms, such as cell phone use, texting while driving, eating, drinking, talking with passengers, as well as using in-vehicle technologies and portable electronic devices. 

While these numbers are significant, they may not state the true size of the problem, since the identification of distraction and its role in a crash can be very difficult to determine using only police-reported data.

David L. Strickland was sworn in as Administrator of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) on January 4, 2010.  Prior to his appointment, he served for eight years on the staff of the U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation.  As the Senior Counsel for the Consumer Protection Subcommittee, he was the lead staff person for the oversight of NHTSA, the Federal Trade Commission, and the Consumer Product Safety Commission.  Mr. Strickland held a staff leadership role in the 2005 reauthorization of NHTSA in the Safe, Accountable, Flexible, Efficient Transportation Equity Act -- a Legacy for Users (SAFETEA-LU), advised Congressional members on safety reforms and funding increases for NHTSA's seat-belt and drunk-driving grant programs, and earned national recognition from Mothers Against Drunk Driving, who named him Congressional Staffer of the Year in 2004 for his role in making the driving public safer.

The World Traffic Safety Symposium, founded in 1990 by the Greater New York Automobile Dealers Association, was formed to address the growing concern of traffic injuries and fatalities on roadways.  Now celebrating its twentieth year, the Symposium is dedicated to bringing automobile manufacturers, law enforcement officials, public and private organizations, and the media together to share information and discuss innovative ways to make traveling safer for drivers and pedestrians.  

Each year, the group gathers research and data from around the globe to create a presentation of the most interesting and innovative advancements in traffic safety.  Industry experts, journalists, and manufacturers are invited to attend this showcase of the most cutting edge, life-saving safety features available in vehicles today.  

To register for the World Traffic Safety Symposium on April 9, e-mail [email protected].

SOURCE New York International Auto Show

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