She Drives: VERITY Now July 2024 Update
At VERITY NOW, we’re working to improve women’s safety in vehicles by advocating for updated crash testing standards. She Drives is a monthly email newsletter with updates on the latest news, research, upcoming events and ways to get involved with VERITY NOW. We’re glad you’re here, now let’s get into it.
In this section, we’ll cover all the things we’ve been working on or paying attention to over the last month and what is coming up next.
VERITY Now Celebrates House and Senate Appropriations Support for Equal Crash Testing
We are thrilled to announce a significant victory for vehicle safety and gender equality. The Senate Appropriations Committee has just published the report accompanying the FY 2025 THUD appropriations bill, and it includes crucial language focused on equality in crash testing.
The Senate report directly calls on the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHSTA) to issue a final NCAP roadmap. The committee states that the roadmap, which has remained in draft form since March 2022, should adopt the most technologically advanced safety equipment and test procedures, including the latest anthropometric test dummies used globally. Importantly, the report also emphasizes that the same frontal crash tests for both male and female drivers should be required to ensure equal safety standards for all.
This achievement builds on the House Appropriation’s recent report language, which also encourages the use of the most advanced female test dummies in both driver and front passenger positions.
We are proud of this progress and remain committed to advocating for the highest safety standards for all vehicle occupants.
The She DRIVES Act Continues to Gain Co-Sponsors
Senator Warnock (D-GA), Senator Capito (R-WV) and Senator Brown (D-OH) just signed onto the She DRIVES Act, which means we now have seven Senators on board in support of the bill. This helps us move one step closer to achieving vehicle safety for all. We are thankful for the overwhelming amount of bi-partisan support for this important legislation that would ensure women’s safety is not optional by mandating the use of female crash test dummies and tests! Learn more about the bill here.
DYK? Road Markings Were Created by a Woman to Ensure Safety on the Roads
In 1917, while driving her Ford Model T down a California roadway, June McCarroll was inspired to create a safety measure that saves lives to this day: “My Model T Ford and I found ourselves face to face with a truck on the paved highway,” she explained. “It did not take me long to choose between a sandy berth to the right and a ten-ton truck to the left! Then I had my idea of a white line painted down the center of the highways of the country as a safety measure.” Read more about other women that have impacted the automotive industry here.
Are you interested in joining our fight for equitable safety standards in vehicle testing? Maybe your organization should be an official VERITY Now coalition partner. Please reach out to info@veritynow.org to learn more about partnership opportunities.
Families for Safe Streets – National Resource Guide
This month we wanted to feature Families for Safe Street’s National Resource Guide, which helps provide support to families and friends that have lost loved ones in a car crash or been seriously injured in a car crash. Access their guide at the link here.
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If you have any questions or just want to say hello, please reach out to our team at info@veritynow.org.