Critical Pedestrian Safety Legislation Moves to White House for President's Signature

Breitbart.com ^ | 12/16/10 | American Council of the Blind

[NormsRevenge]

WASHINGTON, Dec. 16, 2010 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Today the U.S. House of Representatives passed S. 841, The Pedestrian Safety Enhancement Act, legislation that will provide blind, visually impaired, and other pedestrians greater security when traveling in close proximity to hybrid or electric vehicles.

"The passage of this legislation is momentous and marks over two years of vigorous advocacy by ACB membership that has resulted in consensus by the blind community, auto industry, and Congress," stated Mitch Pomerantz, President of the American Council of the Blind.

"The silent nature of hybrid and electric vehicles, coupled with their growing popularity, presents a dilemma. How do we protect individuals dependent on sound for their safety, such as unsuspecting pedestrians and the blind?" said Representative Edolphus Towns, the sponsor of the Pedestrian Safety Enhancement Act, who spent many years teaching travel with a white cane to the blind. "The solution lies in the Pedestrian Safety Enhancement Act. I am proud to have supported this important piece of legislation."

"The visually impaired rely on audio cues to detect nearby traffic and these quiet vehicles pose a special risk to them and to other pedestrians," stated Rep. Cliff Stearns, who joined in offering the Pedestrian Safety Enhancement Act. "This measure enjoys the support of all of the interested parties and it is budget neutral, and I look forward to the President quickly signing this bill."

The legislation will require the U.S. Department of Transportation to begin writing standards that would set requirements for an alert sound that allows blind and other pedestrians to reasonably detect a nearby electric or hybrid vehicle. It also requires that those rules be finalized within three years.

ACB wishes to express its sincere appreciation to Sen. John Kerry (D-Mass.) along with Reps. Ed Towns (D-N.Y.) and Cliff Stearns (R-Fla.)

[The Comedian]

"Critical".

America is toast.

Frowning takes 68 muscles.
Smiling takes 6.
Pulling this trigger takes 2.
I'm lazy.

[E. Pluribus Unum]

Like all things done in Washington, the actual result will be exactly the opposite of that ostensibly intended.

[alice_in_bubbaland]

I’d rather ban liberals. It makes more sense than these panty-waisted statist jack wagons could ever make.

[CharlesWayneCT]

I feel bad now, because I don’t have a device. So if I see a blind person, I think I’ll honk my horn, so they know I’m coming.

Some of your newer cars probably don’t make enough noise either, so maybe we should ALL honk our horns when we see blind people — for their safety.

[CharlesWayneCT]

Blind people should be issued special electronic devices, like EZ-pass. When a “quiet” car senses a blind ez-pass, it can then feed back to the device, which would be strapped around the blind person’s neck. The mild electric shock would warn the blind person that they should not step any further.

[raybbr]

Blind people should be issued special electronic devices, like EZ-pass. When a “quiet” car senses a blind ez-pass, it can then feed back to the device, which would be strapped around the blind person’s neck. The mild electric shock would warn the blind person that they should not step any further.

I thought that was what this was about. How else could they possibly do it?

[CharlesWayneCT]

Seriously? the bill authorizes a 3-year study of what to do. Probably millions of dollars. So it can’t possibly be something you and I thought up in 5 seconds. :-)