The Senate Commerce Committee recently advanced bipartisan legislation that would update crashworthiness testing procedures.
The She Develops Regulations In Vehicle Equality and Safety Act would require the use of a female crash test dummy during crash testing in addition to the male dummy. Currently, only dummies modeled after an average adult male’s height and weight are used.
The bill also would require the secretary of transportation to establish or update the injury criteria for the testing devices be based on real world injuries of the abdomen, chest, head, leg, neck, and pelvis. The secretary also would be required to establish crashworthiness frontal impact tests for adult female occupants in all designated front seating positions.
U.S. Sen. Deb Fischer’s (R-NE) introduced the bill that was cosponsored by U.S. Sens. Marsha Blackburn (R-TN), Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) and Patty Murray (D-WA).
“Today, women are 17 percent more likely to be killed in auto crashes than men,” Fischer said. “That tragic statistic is a preventable one. Our bill will update crash test dummy standards to reflect the diversity of drivers on our roads, ensuring protection and safety for more Americans.”
The new rules would apply to testing procedures under the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s New Car Assessment Program.