Car accidents have been decreasing significantly. 2010 saw a drastic reduction in fatal accidents. This is in part thanks to the hard work of the NHTSA. The agency, which was founded by an act of law in 1966, has been tasked with among other things, to write and enforce safety regulations.

We all remember, for example, the massive number of recalls of Toyota vehicles for floor mat issues. It was the NHTSA which was in charge of the recall situation. Honda Repair Atlanta offers great deals in Atlanta on Acura.

For years from the introduction of the first automobile to the 1970s, it was believed that the federal government did not have the authority to force regulations on to automobile manufacturers. Instead, it was believed that the responsibility of safe vehicles strictly belonged to the auto makers and possibly the states.

However, beginning in the 1960s a number of events started to galvanize public opinion which led to the creation of NHTSA and later to permit NHTSA to take stronger action. The first was Ralph Nader’s book “Unsafe at Any Speed.” Nader was and still is a consumer activist. The book attacked General Motors and specifically the Chevrolet Corvair for being too dangerous to drive. The book gained a lot of attention and the U.S. Senate Commerce Committee began holding hearings on the issue of safer cars which ultimately led to the passage of the National Traffic and Motor Vehicle Safety Act of 1966 which created NHTSA.

Ford’s Pinto car was another controversial issue which led to stricter federal control. During the seventies Ford Motor Company sold a small affordable car called the Pinto. Its size and fairly low price attracted a lot of buyers and the car soon became one of Ford’s best-selling models. The car was not built soundly due to the rear location of its gas tank. The gas tank would actually explode during an accident.

Many victims filed law suits. There were deaths and burn injuries. There were many stories published in the press about this case. The article stated that Ford willingly sold the cars even though they knew that it was unsafe. The selling of the car was more important to Ford than the safety of the driver and passengers.

Thanks to regulations and guidelines, the cars we drive today are safer than ever before.

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