[Congressional Bills 111th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 841 Introduced in Senate (IS)]
111th CONGRESS
1st Session
S. 841
To direct the Secretary of Transportation to study and establish a
motor vehicle safety standard that provides for a means of alerting
blind and other pedestrians of motor vehicle operation.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
April 21, 2009
Mr. Kerry (for himself and Mr. Specter) introduced the following bill;
which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce,
Science, and Transportation
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To direct the Secretary of Transportation to study and establish a
motor vehicle safety standard that provides for a means of alerting
blind and other pedestrians of motor vehicle operation.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Pedestrian Safety Enhancement Act of
2009''.
SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.
In this Act:
(1) Motor vehicle.--The term ``motor vehicle'' has the
meaning given such term in section 30102(a)(6) of title 49,
United States Code.
(2) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary
of Transportation.
SEC. 3. FINDINGS.
Congress finds that--
(1) motor vehicles designed to provide the desirable
benefits of reducing harmful pollutants and operating with
greater fuel efficiency include gasoline-electric hybrid and
electric-only vehicles, and in the foreseeable future may
include vehicles powered by hydrogen fuel cell and other engine
designs that rely on fuels and technologies other than the
gasoline-powered internal combustion engine;
(2) these vehicle engine designs operate or are likely to
operate with virtually no sound being produced by the vehicle;
(3) the total number of hybrid motor vehicles sold per year
in the United States is growing dramatically, and may someday
equal or exceed the number of internal combustion engine motor
vehicles on the Nation's roads;
(4) blind pedestrians cannot locate and evaluate traffic by
sight and instead must listen to traffic to discern its speed,
direction, and other attributes in order to travel safely and
independently;
(5) other people, including pedestrians who are not blind,
bicyclists, runners, and small children, benefit from multi-
sensory information available from vehicle traffic, including
the sound of vehicle engines;
(6) when operating on their electric engines, hybrid
vehicles cannot be heard by blind people and others, rendering
such vehicles extremely dangerous when driving on the street,
emerging from driveways, moving through parking lots, and in
other situations where pedestrians and vehicles come into
proximity with each other;
(7) failure to take immediate action assuring that blind
pedestrians can hear hybrid and other silent vehicles in all
phases of their operation will inevitably lead to pedestrian
injuries and fatalities; and
(8) such accidents are preventable through vehicle designs
which take into account the multi-sensory nature of traffic
detection and avoidance, and require that vehicles emit a
minimum level of sound designed to alert all pedestrians,
especially blind pedestrians, to the presence of such vehicles.
SEC. 4. STUDY OF METHOD TO PROTECT BLIND AND OTHER PEDESTRIANS.
(a) Required Study.--Not later than 90 days after the date of the
enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall conduct a study to--
(1) determine the most practical means of ensuring that
blind and other pedestrians receive substantially similar
information to information such pedestrians receive from sound
emitted by vehicles that use internal combustion engines;
(2) determine the minimum level of sound emitted from a
motor vehicle that is necessary to provide blind pedestrians
with the information needed to make safe travel judgments; and
(3) consider whether the minimum level of sound requirement
or another method that conveys information essential for
pedestrian safety provides the most reliable information to
support safe travel of blind and other pedestrians, including--
(A) which method provides blind and other
pedestrians the greatest amount of information
regarding location, motion, speed, and direction of
travel of a motor vehicle;
(B) the cost and feasibility of each method,
including the cost and feasibility of equipping each
individual pedestrian with any technology necessary to
receive information; and
(C) which method ensures the least reliance by
blind and other pedestrians upon technology they must
possess when traveling and thereby provides the
greatest amount of independence and opportunity for
spontaneous travel for these pedestrians.
(b) Required Consultation.--While conducting the study, the
Secretary shall--
(1) review all available research regarding the effect of
traffic sounds on pedestrian safety;
(2) commission such additional research as may be
necessary;
(3) consult with consumer groups representing individuals
who are blind, other pedestrians, cyclists, and advocates for
children; and
(4) consult with automobile manufacturers and professional
organizations which represent such manufacturers.
(c) Report.--The Secretary shall--
(1) complete the study required under this section not
later than 2 years after commencing such study; and
(2) submit a report to Congress that contains the findings
of such study.
SEC. 5. MINIMUM SOUND REQUIREMENT FOR MOTOR VEHICLES.
(a) In General.--Not later than 90 days after completion of the
study required under section 4, the Secretary shall promulgate a motor
vehicle safety standard under section 30111 of title 49, United States
Code, to establish a method for alerting blind and other pedestrians of
the presence and operation of nearby motor vehicles to enable such
pedestrians to travel safely and independently in urban, rural, and
residential environments.
(b) Requirements.--The standard required under this section shall
provide that every motor vehicle be equipped with a method--
(1) to provide blind and other pedestrians with a non-
visual alert regarding the location, motion, speed, and
direction of travel of a motor vehicle that provides
substantially the same protection of such pedestrians as that
provided by a motor vehicle with an internal combustion engine;
and
(2) that will permit a blind or other pedestrian to
determine the location, motion, speed, and direction of travel
of a motor vehicle with substantially the same degree of
certainty as such pedestrians are able to determine the
location, motion, speed, and direction of travel of a motor
vehicle with an internal combustion engine.
(c) Effective Date.--The standard promulgated under this section
shall apply to all new motor vehicles manufactured or sold in the
United States beginning on that date that is 2 years after the issuance
of such standard.
SEC. 6. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.
There are authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary such sums
as may be necessary to carry out this Act.
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