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SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 22, 2009
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NEWS ABOUT: highway safety

highway safety stories: 9 news summaries

(Newser) - In 2003 a federal agency compiled hundreds of pages of research on the dangers of using cell phones while driving, but suppressed the findings because of pressure from Congress. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, a part of the Transportation Department, also planned a long-term study of the risks of... More »

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cell phones • highway safety • Freedom of Information Act • driving • car safety • consumer advocacy • Department of Transportation • driver distraction

Battle Over Big Rigs Pits Efficiency Against Safety

Measure would extended federal limits on big rigs

Jun 6, 09 7:02 AM CDT
(Newser) - Bigger is not only better—it’s also safer and greener, say trucking-industry advocates who would like to see limits on the size and weight of big rigs on interstate highways lifted. One tells USA Today bigger trucks are more fuel-efficient and minimize pollution. But if truckers are successful, one... More »

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highway safety • trucks • road safety • drivers • 18-wheeler

 Pellet Gun Sniper 
 Targets Calif. Freeway 

Drivers hit as they pass hilly lowland

May 12, 09 3:08 PM CDT
(Newser) - A sniper who has been using a San Francisco-area freeway for target practice has hit nearly a dozen cars over the past two weeks, KGO-TV reports. Police are trying to find the perpetrator—who they say may be using an air-powered rifle from nearby hills or parks—before someone is... More »

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California • highway safety • Bay Area • highways • sniper

 Motorcycle Deaths Rise 6.6%

Overall traffic deaths down but motorbike deaths up for 10th year in a row

Aug 15, 08 8:54 AM CDT
(Newser) - The number of motorcyclist deaths rose in 2007 for the 10th year in a row, the New York Times reports, jumping 6.6% even as the overall number of vehicle deaths continued to drop. Motorcycle deaths now account for one in eight traffic fatalities, totaling 5,154 last year—a... More »

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highway safety • accident • driving • motorcycle crash • road safety • traffic accident • drivers • traffic fatalities

Hands-Free Phones Still Dangerous Driver Overload

Scientists say any kind of phone use makes for risky driving

Jul 1, 08 7:33 AM CDT
(Newser) - California motorists are now banned from using cell phones, but scientists say the move won't make the freeways any safer, reports the Los Angeles Times. Research shows that it is the lack of attention rather than occupied hands that impacts safety, and that drivers chatting on phones with both hands... More »

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California • cell phones • motorists • highway safety • driving • neurology

Chrysler Plans Wi-Fi
on 2009 Models

The struggling automaker will have wireless Internet options available

Jun 25, 08 8:30 AM CDT
(Newser) - Struggling automaker Chrysler—the weakest of Detroit’s Big Three—is looking to the information highway to gain an advantage. To the dismay of some highway safety experts, the automaker will offer wireless Internet access as an option in all of its 2009 models, the Los Angeles Times reports. More »

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Chrysler • highway safety • WiFi • auto industry

OPINION

Surplus Signs Driving Motorists to Distraction

Too much information along roads may be creating a hazard

Jun 11, 08 2:27 AM CDT
(Newser) - Drivers in America are often confronted with a forest of signs reminding them of speed limits and traffic control measures—but the overwhelming information may be making roadways more dangerous, John Staddon writes in the Atlantic. The glut of reminders can take drivers' attention away from the road and dull... More »

MORE ABOUT:
car accident • traffic • highway safety • driving • highways

 Slow Down!
 Autobahn Hits a Limit 

Germany rolls out first 75mph speed limit

Apr 10, 08 10:16 AM CDT
(Newser) - The German autobahn is one of the world's last stretches of open road where a driver can learn how it feels to coax a Porsche to 200 mph and beyond—legally. But those days are numbered. the German state of Bremen has imposed a 75 mph speed limit and others... More »

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environment • Angela Merkel • Germany • Berlin • highway safety • European Commission • autobahn • speed limit • fuel consumption • Bundesrat

Corzine:
Do As I Say,
Not As I Did

Injured NJ governor pushes seatbelt use
in dramatic PSA

May 25, 07 3:21 PM CDT
(Newser) - Jon Corzine dodged a bullet, and he wants to make sure he isn't alone. The New Jersey governor, gravely injured in an SUV crash last month while not wearing a seatbelt, appears in a new 30-second TV ad that makes it clear he's learned his lesson. Today he joined the... More »

MORE ABOUT:
Jon Corzine • car accident • seatbelts • highway safety • safety

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