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OUTCOME MEASURES

The agency's FY 2005 Budget Request to Congress includes NHTSA's annual Performance Plan highlighting the agency outcome measures and their linkage to agency activities and programs. The plan ties directly to the goals and strategies outlined in both NHTSA's and the Department's Strategic Plans. Although a number of factors outside of NHTSA's control influence the severity of highway crashes and the resulting fatalities and injuries, there is documented evidence that federal vehicle and highway safety programs (in conjunction with the State, local, and private programs engendered, in part, by the federal initiatives) have been highly effective in reducing highway deaths and injuries.

DOT Outcome Goal:

Reduce the number of highway-related fatalities to no more than 1.0 per 100 million vehicle
miles traveled (VMT) by the end of 2008.

Reduce the rate of alcohol-related highway fatalities per 100 million vehicle miles traveled (VMT).

Alcohol-related fatalities remained at 41 percent (a rate of 0.61 fatalities per 100 million VMT) of the total with 17,419 deaths in 2002, up slightly from 17,400 in 2001. The 2003-2005 target of 0.53 per 100 million VMT, if met, will result in a reduction of alcohol-related fatalities to 15,750, assuming that VMT will continue to increase by an average of 2.0 percent each year (from 2001 VMT). Reaching the 2005 alcohol-related fatality rate target will require reducing the rate 15 percent from its 2002 level. It will be a challenge to meet this target by the end of 2005 . Even though NHTSA should begin to see some positive results by the end of 2004, with new programs it is implementing, the agency still may not be able to achieve the 2005 target without the commitment of States and communities to enact, and more importantly, enforce strong alcohol laws, and to reform their individual impaired driving control systems.

d

Increase safety belt use.

Safety belt use in 2003 increased to 79 percent—an all-time high. The agency had set 2004's safety belt use target for 79 percent. NHTSA is expressing its 2005 target as a range, dependent upon the proportion of the VMT covered by primary safety belt use laws. Primary laws are the most effective way to ensure more vehicle occupants buckle up. These targets cannot be achieved without cooperation from States and communities. Over the past several years, the agency has been converting approximately 8.5 percent of the non-safety belt users, to more regular users. Continuing to convert this number each year becomes more difficult as the set of “hard core” non-users becomes a higher proportion of all remaining non-users. States and communities will need to pass and enforce safety belt laws, and encourage their use in order for the national target to be met. If States and communities meet this challenge, and 100 percent of the VMT become covered by primary safety belt laws, NHTSA believes 85 percent safety b elt use is possible.

d

% of 2005 VMT in Primary Safety Belt Law States &
2005 Safety Belt Use Projected Targets

Safety belts are approximately 50 percent effective for preventing fatality in severe crashes. Current safety belt use prevents an estimated 14,000 fatalities and 325,000 serious injuries every year, saving $50 billion in medical care, lost productivity and other injury related costs. Conversely, the failure of crash victims to wear safety belts leads to an estimated 7,000 preventable fatalities and over 100,000 needless injuries, costing society $20 billion. For each percentage point increase in safety belt use, approximately 250 lives are saved each year.

Increase restraint use among 0 through 7 year olds.

Age appropriate child safety seats are the most effective restraint systems available to child occupants of passenger vehicles. Restraint use by young children reached record levels in 2002, with 99 percent of infants and 94 percent of toddlers restrained. However, restraint use drops off when children reach the 4 -7 age category. Rear-facing infant seats reduce the risk of fatal injury in a car crash by 71 percent, forward-facing safety seats for toddlers by 54 percent, and safety belts by 45 percent. From 1975 to 2002, an estimated 6,567 lives were saved by the use of restraints (child safety seats, booster seats, or adult belts). In 2002, an estimated 376 children (under 5 years of age) were saved as a result of child restraint use. If 100 percent of children were protected by child restraints, an estimated 485 lives (that is an additional 109) could have been saved in 2002.

d

The agency has set a new annual target for 2005 to increase restraint use among children 0 through 7 years of age, to 91 percent for 2005. The agency changed its prior goal of reducing the number of child occupant fatalities, 0-4 years old, because the goal of 465 was surpassed in 2002, three years prior to the 2005 goal. NHTSA chose a new goal of increasing restraint use among 0 through 7 year-olds. By increasing restraint use among all children, the occurrences of death and injury, if the appropriate restraint systems are used correctly, should continue to decline. The agency relies on the States, communities and other groups to encourage the use of child restraints and booster seats and discourage placing children under 13 in the front seating position.