Experts to Discuss Truck, Bus Safety at NTSB Forum
The forum will be chaired by NTSB Board Member Robert L. Sumwalt and will focus on issues such as government oversight, carrier operations, driver training and licensing, driver safety and health, and enhanced vehicle safety technologies.
As part of its continued focus on large truck and bus safety, the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) will convene a public forum May 10-11, 2011, in Washington, D.C., to review the progress that has been made since NTSB held a series of public hearings on the matter in 1999-2000.
The forum will be chaired by NTSB Board Member Robert L. Sumwalt and will focus on issues such as government oversight, carrier operations, driver training and licensing, driver safety and health, and enhanced vehicle safety technologies.
"As evidenced by the recent tragic accidents in New York and New Jersey, there is still a lot of work to do in the area of highway safety," Sumwalt said. "During this forum, we will review the effectiveness of established programs as well as new initiatives in motor carrier operations and vehicle safety to ensure we are doing all we can to make our nation's highways safer."
In the decade since NTSB conducted hearings on truck and bus safety, the agency has issued approximately 400 recommendations to help reduce the number of deaths resulting from truck- and bus-related accidents. While there has been a general decline in the number of deaths since 1999, thousands are still killed and tens of thousands injured each year in accidents involving large trucks and buses.
"We will certainly use this forum to review our advances over the last ten years, but more importantly, we will use it as an opportunity to generate new ideas that will lead to future successes in truck and bus safety," Sumwalt said.
Representatives from federal and state agencies, trucking and bus industries, unions, and advocacy groups will serve as panelists during the forum.
The public can view the forum in person or by live webcast on NTSB's website. An agenda and webcast details will be posted on the Board's website on the Truck and Bus SafetyForum web page.