General Motors Corp. Statement on World Health Day Activities DETROIT, April 7 /PRNewswire/ -- The following remarks and information should be attributed to Robert C. Lange, executive director, Structure and Safety Integration "General Motors is proud to play a major role in making our roads safer, in North America and around the world. Many of the vehicle safety technologies that we take for granted today -- such as modern crash test dummies, energy-absorbing steering columns and scores of others -- were developed by GM and shared with the government and other automakers. Every vehicle we design, produce and sell worldwide contains nearly 100 years of safety engineering heritage. "World Health Day gives us an opportunityto collectively reflect on how innovative safety technologies, along with improvements in highway design and construction, emergency medical care, traffic management and driver behavior, have reduced the vehicle fatality rate in the U.S. to historic lows. We know there is more work to do here, but particularly in developing nations, where road conditions and access to state-of-the-art trauma care may be lacking. The men and women of GM who are developing today's and the next generation of vehicle safety technologies devote their careers to saving lives every single day. For them, occupant safety has always been a 365-day pursuit. "GM has invested significantly in technologies that help protect occupants as well as help prevent crashes from occurring in the first place. Recent developments include: -- The architectures of GM's newest small and midsize cars extensively use high-strength steel and tailor-welded steel reinforcements that provide exceptional structural integrity for the passenger compartment and outstanding impact protection for the front, rear and sides. -- GM has joined with other automakers in voluntarily committing during the next few years to enhance front- and side-impact protection, much of which will be accomplished with more side-impact and side head curtain air bags, as well as structural changes to certain vehicles. -- GM recently added StabiliTrak, a vehicle stability enhancement system, to extended passenger vans as standard equipment, adding to a 2-million-plus portfolio of vehicles on the road with this important crash-avoidance feature. GM was the first automaker to introduce this technology, which helps drivers maintain vehicle control under demanding road conditions and emergency maneuvers. -- Research shows that daytime running lamps (DRLs), standard in the majority of GM vehicles since 1995, have reduced daytime multi-vehicle crashes involving our vehicles up to 12.5 percent and car-pedestrian crashes by up to 15 percent. We are particularly pleased with the safety benefits of DRLs as they extend to pedestrians because many of the victims of these crashes are children under 12. GM has petitioned the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration to require DRLs on all vehicles sold in the U.S. -- Our SenseAble driving program in the U.S., developed in 2000, combines research, technology and education to help address the issue of distracted driving. GM was the first automaker to develop principles that govern the development and implementation of in-vehicle telematics. -- GM's OnStar subsidiary is helping to notify emergency responders of potentially serious crashes, and is rolling out technology -- Advanced Automatic Crash Notification -- that can even provide responders with specific information about the type and severity of a crash. OnStar uses the Global Positioning System and cellular technology to connect vehicles to OnStar call centers. "Just as it has for nearly a century, GM is committed to doing its part. Yet we are just one part of the safety picture. Drivers, passengers and individual governments also play key roles in preventing and reducing road fatalities and injuries. "Drivers should obey local traffic laws, and governments should enforce those laws. Driversand their passengers should wear safety belts. Children should be properly restrained in appropriate child safety seats or booster seats until they are old enough to safely wear adult safety belts. Children 12 and under are safer in a rear seat, properly restrained. "According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, an additional 7,153 lives could have been saved in the U.S. alone in 2002 if all vehicle occupants over age 4 wore safety belts. We know that safety belts can save many more lives around the world. "GM is a founding member of the National Safety Council's Air Bag and Seat Belt Safety Campaign, which is dedicated to promoting the safety benefits of restraint use. GM has supported primary safety belt enforcement laws in the U.S. We also work extensively with the National SAFE KIDS Campaign, funding the industry's largest and longest-running child safety seat fitment program, in addition to child seat giveaways to families who need them. This life- saving program, called SAFE KIDS BUCKLE UP, was begun in 1997 and recently inspected its 500,000th child seat. In addition to this program, we are broadening our focus to include 5-to-9-year-olds who should be using belt- positioning booster seats. "Because impaired driving is a serious and growing public health threat, we have advocated for tougher drunk driving laws and we work with Mothers Against Drunk Driving to educate young people about the perils of driving while impaired and being a passenger in a vehicle operated by an impaired driver. A recent study found that 2,335 children died in car crashes involving drinking drivers between 1997 and 2002. Of those children killed, more than two-thirds were riding in the car with a drinking driver. "GM regions around the world are actively focused on educating drivers and passengers about staying safe in motor vehicles. They include: GM Asia-Pacific -- In China, one of our fastest-growing markets, GM China launched a driver safety education campaign in 2003 in conjunction with the Shanghai government. GM China is about to launch a second phase of the safety campaign and may have another exciting safety development to share soon. -- In Thailand, GM and Chevrolet have been focusing on child passenger safety since 2000, promoting child safety seat installation education and distribution programs as well as safety belt use in general. The program has been recognized as a key part of the Thailand Global Road Safety Partnership. -- In South Korea, GM Daewoo has donated child safety seats to the Seoul National Children's Hospital and SAFE KIDS Korea, and provides child safety seats at a 50 percent discount at all domestic GM Daewoo dealerships and service centers. -- GM India conducts driver training at participating dealers on traffic rules and road safety. -- In Australia, Holden's child passenger safety program is targeting the 70 percent of parents and caregivers who incorrectly install child restraints. Holden distributes brochures and videos to community groups and the general public to help raise awareness about the risks of incorrectly fitted restraints, complemented by a free mobile child restraint inspection program. Holden is broadening its focus this year to include safety messages about the importance of booster seat use among older children who have outgrown child restraints but are too young to properly wear an adult safety belt. Monash University Accident Research Centre (MUARC) and Holden have redeveloped a state-of-the art vehicle simulator to carry out advanced research into the way people behave as they drive. Holden's driver training facility in Queensland offers programs aimed at educating drivers about improving safe driving techniques. The automaker also is actively involved in safety research as part of its collaborative relationship with the Monash University Accident Research Centre. Programs currently under way include side impact protection; human body modeling; full- scale reconstructions of real crashes to validate brain models; pedestrian protection; older drivers; and crash investigations in Latin America and the Middle East. GM Latin America, Africa, Middle East -- GM do Brazil has been working with SAFE KIDS on child passenger safety activities since 2001, and will be joined by GM Chile later this year. GM Argentina will begin a 'Safety for Kids' pilot program this year. GM Colmotores promotes a number of child safety programs, including one that promotes safety belt use on school buses. -- In the United Arab Emirates, GM is partnering with the American University of Sharja, American Hospital in Dubai, Dubai police and a major Dubai shopping mall to raise awareness of the importance of child safety seats and teach people how to use them correctly. -- The GM-sponsored Beterem SAFE KIDS Israeli Buckle-Up campaign combines a variety of programs in local elementary schools, baby care and other medical centers to raise awareness about the proper use of child restraint systems. GM Europe -- The Forum for the Automobile and Society, a group comprising EU decision makers and the auto industry, will discuss road safety at a meeting in Brussels. GM is a member of the forum. GM North America -- GM de Mexico is looking at establishinga partnership exploring with SAFE KIDS in Mexico, to enhance child safety in vehicles. An announcement could come later this year. -- In the United States, GM is continuing its focus on safety belt and child restraint use with participation in events such as the national 'Click It or Ticket' law enforcement mobilization in May-June (Memorial Day driving holiday), sponsored by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and others. GM supports the SAFE KIDS BUCKLE UP program, which recentlychecked its 500,000th child safety seat. Since 1997, the SKBU program also has distributed 260,000 child safety seats to families who need them. During Child Passenger Safety Week in February, GM and the National SAFE KIDS Campaign released video footage aimed at educating parents and caregivers about the dangers older children face when they are not properly restrained in belt-positioning booster seats. -- GM also is working to educate parents about the hazards of leaving children unattended inmotor vehicles, especially in hot weather. The 'Never Leave Your Child Alone' program uses grassroots outreach, brochures, displays, media relations and other avenues to send the message that heatstroke can seriously injure or kill young children if they are left in a closed, parked vehicle, even on a seemingly mild sunny day. GM is working on technology that would alert passersby to the presence of a child, vulnerable adult or pet left in a dangerously hot vehicle." DATASOURCE: General Motors Corporation CONTACT: Jim Schell of GM Product Safety Communications, +1-586-947-4624, or +1-586-596-2415, Web site: http://media.gm.com/ http://www.gm.com/

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