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This report contains the results of a literature review and expert panel meeting that explored whether unconscious defense mechanisms can be overcome to encourage the full time use of safety belts.  The first phase of the study was a review of the theoretical literature on anxiety, risk perceptions, and fatalism in response to safety threats.  In the second phase, a group of eight experts in various fields met to discuss these issues and to make recommendations to overcome these unconscious barriers.

Because of the substantial number of driving while intoxicated (DWI) offenders driving illegally with suspended licenses and the limited enforcement resources available to deal with the problem, many States and the Federal government have begun to enact legislation directed at the vehicles owned by offenders to limit their illicit driving. Such policies fall into three broad categories: (1) programs that require special plates on the vehicles of DWI offenders and/or confiscate the vehicle plates and vehicle registration; (2) devices installed in the vehicle that prevent its operation if the driver has been drinking (alcohol ignition interlock); and (3) programs that impound, immobilize, confiscate or forfeit the vehicle. This study updates as of the end of 2004 a 1992 NHTSA study of vehicle sanctions.  The 1992 study reported that 32 States had laws providing for various vehicle sanctions; however, in most of these States these sanctions were rarely used.  This current study updates that effort with a contemporary overview of vehicle sanction laws and their application as of December 2004.  It goes beyond the earlier study by reporting on information from other countries, incorporating a review of ignition interlock devices (not considered in the earlier study) and providing a more recent list of vehicle sanctions on a State-by-State basis.

The connected-vehicle research program is a major initiative under USDOT’s Connect Vehicle Research Program and includes both vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) and vehicle-to-infrastructure research activities. The goal of the Vehicle-to-Vehicle Safety Application Research Plan is to describe the research needed to support this decision. The objectives of the research plan are to determine if vehicle-to-vehicle communication safety applications meet a safety need, are practicable technologically and economically, have objectively measurable compliance, have driver acceptance, and are effective. This research plan only reflects the V2V communication research portion of the connected-vehicles program. The research plan provides background, vision, goals and objects, and an overview, as well as a detailed roadmap and summary descriptions of the major research tracks that make up the V2V safety application research activities.

http://www.nhtsa.gov/DOT/NHTSA/NVS/Crash%20Avoidance/Technical%20Publications/2011/811373.pdf

Implications for Highway Safety Program Planning;
In 2005 NHTSA released a study which examined States' breath test refusal rates. Overall, the rates varied dramatically among States, from 5% to 85%.  (An upcoming Research Note updates this data.) The study included interviews in five States to learn about the refusal issue and identify potential solutions for high rates. One strategy that emerged is the use of warrants to obtain blood samples from drivers who refuse to provide breath samples.

This current study, conducted by Preusser Research Group (PRG), documents the use of the search warrant and blood draw approach in four States: Arizona, Michigan, Oregon, and Utah.  PRG conducted interviews with about 15 people, including officers, prosecutors, defense attorneys, and judges in each of the States. These individuals provided information on policies and procedures, as well as opinions on the warrant process.

This project was implemented to evaluate the utility and effectiveness of the MinorChecker system, a system that provides retailers and servers of alcohol with the ability to quickly and easily determine the age of a potential customer as well as the authenticity of the identification by simply swiping the driver's license through a card reader.  It was hypothesized that the implementation of an education/awareness campaign on underage drinking combined with the MinorChecker would serve to reduce the availability of alcohol to those under 21 years of age by increasing the frequency and efficiency with which licensees checked the IDs of patrons.  Black and white, 8.5" x 11", 46 pages.