But before any of those changes could be made, Ronald Reagan won the presidency on a promise of deregulation, especially of the automotive industry.
Insurance companies sued the administration and the case went all the way to the Supreme Court. Cars already had seat belts, so all Detroit had to do was convince states to pass mandatory seat belt laws and it was off the hook for installing expensive air bags or automatic belts. The lobbying was intense, with top executives from General Motors and Chrysler, including Lee Iacocca , making a direct pitch to state legislators about seat belt safety.
I haven't seen a bill this heavily lobbied in a long time. There were even accusations that G. New York was the first state to pass a mandatory seat belt law followed by New Jersey.
As one Bronx resident grumbled , "This is not supposed to be Russia where the government tells you what to do and when to do it. Transportation Secretary Elizabeth Dole and Ford Motor Company Chairman Donald Petersen watch a demonstration of air bags to be installed in the driver side of 5, Ford automobiles under a 35 million dollar contract between the General Services Administration and Ford Motor Company, Texans die every day in vehicle accidents.
In , of the 3, automobile accidents reported across the state, 2, of those accidents resulted in a fatality or serious bodily harm. Trucks are not immune. In , fatalities were reported of drivers of pickup trucks.
Of those reported fatalities, were not wearing a seat belt device. Wearing a seat belt prevents passenger ejection during a severe accident that involves a rollover. The child safety seat must be installed according to manufacturer instructions and recommendations.
Children who are 8 years or older, regardless of their height or weight, may use factory installed adult seat belt. In general, children under the age of 12 are always safer when they ride in the rear seat of a passenger vehicle with a properly installed child safety seat system.
This myth is often associated with fire- and water-related accidents, which account for less than one-half of one percent of all crashes. More importantly, seat belts can actually prevent you from being knocked unconscious, which can increase your chances of escaping during an accident.
Think again. Routine, seemingly low-key trips can be deceptively dangerous. Did you know that most traffic-related deaths happen within 25 miles from your house and at speeds less than 40 mph, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration? Your life and the lives of your passengers are at stake. It only takes about three seconds to strap on your seat belt. Air bags are designed to protect a buckled passenger, not an unbuckled one. Seat belts secure you in the proper position to benefit from an air bag deployment.
Using air bags in conjunction with seat belts is your best bet. Forget statistics, campaigns or pleas from car manufacturers. As the history of the seatbelt shows, the most effective way to get drivers and passengers to buckle up is to hit them where it hurts: in their wallets. Although lap belts were offered in cars as early as the s, they were snubbed by many until , when New York became the first state to crack down on car safety.
The importance of using seatbelts is no joke. No other quick daily habit—not even eating your veggies—has such life-changing benefits. Compare that with the early s, when just roughly 11 percent of front-seat passengers wore belts. So when did people buckle down on buckling up?
Here, a look back at the invention, technology and laws behind seatbelts. Patent Office issues the first seatbelt patent. Thirty-four states now have primary enforcement laws, while 15 states have secondary laws, which means drivers pulled over for another reason can receive a ticket for not wearing a seatbelt.
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