General Motors Corp. Statement on World Health Day Activities
07 April 2004 - 9:00PM
PR Newswire (US)
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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