Closeup of speedometer

General Motors Has Set A New Precedence For Auto Recalls This Year

General Motors (GM) has set a new precedence for auto recalls this year, as the first cavalcade of auto recalls quickly turned the safety notices into background noise ignored by many of the effected car owners. GM started the avalanche on February 2014, when they announced that they had to fix a fatally flawed ignition […]

Bicyclists on the road

Chicago is one of the nation’s bike-friendliest cities

Chicago is one of the nation’s bike-friendliest cities, but it wasn’t always that way. At one point, the two-wheelers / “High Wheelers”, introduced in 1870, were banned from parts of the city; according to the Chicago Park District, the “High Wheelers” were prohibited from Lincoln Park because of the danger they posed for riders and […]

Passenger with seatbelt on

Click It or Ticket

As more and more people hit the road for summer vacations, graduations or family outings, you may notice additional law enforcement agencies on the road enforcing seat belt safety laws. The Illinois Department of Transportation and Illinois State Police are joining forces with local police departments to crack down on motorists who are not using […]

Mechanic fixing brakes

Should Brake-Override Systems in Cars be Mandatory?

Are brake-override systems necessary? Should they be mandatory for all new vehicles? Federal regulators seem to think so. In fact, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration just recently proposed that all automobile manufacturers implement design changes in future vehicles that would include a brake-throttle override system. A number of car manufacturers already include this feature […]

Vehicle crash test

Female Crash Test Dummies Now Regularly Being Used

It may surprise you to learn that it wasn’t until 2003 that the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) began to sometimes use female crash test dummies when simulating crashes to determine the safety of vehicles. Why does it matter whether female crash test dummies are used? Well, because as explained in the ABC.com article, […]

Smart car

Are insurers ready for driver-free cars?

Many of us fondly recall the Jetsons cartoon from our childhoods. It was a show that still seems incredibly futuristic, and yet many of the inventions envisioned in the Jetsons aren’t yet a part of our reality. But one concept–driver-free cars–is already a possibility in 2012. Search engine leader Google is currently testing driverless cars […]

Fiery car

How much should automakers be fined for not complying with recall rules?

In late March, the United States Senate approved legislation that would increase the fines levied against U.S. automakers who failed to comply with automobile recall regulations. Currently, automakers are fined a maximum of $17 million but the proposed legislation would greatly increase the maximum fines to $250 million. As explained in a Detroit News article, […]

Windshields on

Safety Advocacy Group Seeks Enactment of Rear View Mirror Safety Regs

Safety advocacy groups play an important role in forcing the enactment of safety regulations and thus protecting consumers from dangerous products. A particularly vulnerable sector of our society is children. If anyone requires advocacy on their behalf, it’s children–especially when it comes to automobile safety. Fortunately, KidsandCars.org is in their corner, constantly pushing for safety […]

Couple at funeral

Sudden Increase in Teen Deaths From Car Crashes

You may find it surprising to learn that car accidents are the leading cause of death for United States teenagers. And, sadly, according to the results of a new study conducted by the Governors Highway Safety Association (GHSA), the number of teen deaths caused by automobile accidents increased in the first half of 2011. This […]

Motorcyclist driving on highway

Should Motorcyclists Be Subjected to Safety Checkpoints?

Congress is currently considering legislation that would provide monetary grants to states mandating random safety checkpoints for motorcycles. Georgia and New York already have similar programs in place and the grants under consideration would encourage other states to implement similar laws. According to this Los Angeles Time article, the impetus behind the passage of this […]