• The National Safety Council and representatives from the insurance industry hosted a panel discussion on the challenges of distracted driving on December 4 in Washington, DC. The group discussed mid- and long-term countermeasures and their trade-offs; challenges across various industries; methods and tools to audit, monitor, and document behavioral changes; and the insurance industry’s view of failures and challenges to further control.

• New research from the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety found that when a teen driver has only teen passengers in their vehicle, the fatality rate for all people involved in a crash increased 51 percent—specifically, fatality rates jumped 56 percent for occupants of other vehicles, 45 percent for the teen driver, and 17 percent for pedestrians and cyclists. When older passengers (35 and older) ride with a teen driver, overall fatality rates in crashes decreased 8 percent.

• The Federal Transit Administration announced in October that it will increase the minimum rate of random drug testing from 25 percent to 50 percent of covered employees for employers subject to FTA’s drug and alcohol regulation, effective January 1, 2019. This change is due to an increase in the industry’s ‘‘positive rate’’ as reflected in random drug test data for calendar year 2017.

• In a special presentation of its podcast, Behind the Scene, the NTSB highlighted the findings and recommendations of its investigation of the March 2017 train derailment in Graettinger, Iowa. The accident resulted in a significant ethanol release. NTSB investigators from the Office of Railroad, Pipeline, and Hazardous Materials Investigations shared their experiences while on scene and the lessons learned with the aim of bringing more attention to this critical HAZMAT safety issue. Listen to the podcast.

• In October, the American Waterways Operators, an advocate for the tugboat, towboat, and barge industry, released a new safety resource, “Developing a Fatigue Management Plan: A Guide for Towing Vessel Operators.” According to the AWO, the guide is “designed to help towing companies take a proactive approach to fatigue prevention by incorporating fatigue risk management plans into their safety management systems.”

• On December 30, Utah became the first state to recognize per se alcohol impairment at a blood alcohol content (BAC) of .05. Utah previously followed the nationwide standard of .08. The new law also states that a driver who has that BAC and “operates a motor vehicle in a negligent manner causing the death of another” will have committed felony automobile homicide. In 2017, Member T. Bella Dinh-Zarr testified on behalf of the NTSB in support of the proposed lowering of the BAC.

• According to the findings of a report released by the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety in late September, more and more, drivers are recognizing the value in having vehicles with advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS) like blind spot monitoring systems, forward collision warning, and lane keeping assist. However, although many of these technologies are rapidly being offered as standard, many drivers are unaware of the safety limitations of ADAS in their vehicles. The AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety commissioned researchers from the University of Iowa to survey drivers who recently purchased a 2016 or 2017 model-year vehicle with ADAS technologies.

• On Sept.19, the Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance released the results of its Operation Safe Driver Week, which occurred in July. Commercial motor vehicle (CMV) enforcement personnel patrolled roadways during the week to identify CMV drivers and passenger vehicle drivers engaged in unsafe driving behaviors. Officers issued more than 57,000 citations and 87,000 warnings to drivers. The third most citations issued were related to a lack of seat belt use. Nearly 1,200 citations were issued to drivers for failing to use a seat belt while operating a CMV, and more than 3,500 were issued to drivers of passenger vehicles.

• Throughout the month of September, the General Aviation (GA) Joint Steering Committee, which includes representatives from government and industry working together to improve GA safety, focused specifically on reducing loss-of-control in-flight accidents. The FAA, which hosts the GAJSC, released a safety briefing paper on “Stabilized Approach.” Focusing on establishing and maintaining a stabilized approach and landing can help pilots avoid loss of control. 

• On Dec. 17, New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy signed a package of school bus safety bills into law that raise safety standards for school buses and school bus operators in the state of New Jersey. One bill provision addresses the medical fitness of school bus drivers: it requires holders of a bus driver license to submit a medical report by a certified medical examiner. It also requires bus drivers over age 70 to submit proof of physical fitness every year, and those over age 75 to submit this proof every 6 months.

• According to the National Conference of State Legislators, many states are attempting to catch and punish motorists who pass stopped school buses by allowing cameras to be placed on the outside of the bus to record such illegal passing. At least 16 states have school bus stop-arm camera laws. In 2018, Pennsylvania became the 16th state to authorize localities or school districts to use school bus stop-arm cameras. Although the intent of these cameras is largely to catch and document violators of traffic laws and ensure the safe on- and off-boarding of children, the cameras can also be used to assess the cause of accidents.