COMMITTEE FOR THE STUDY OF A
MOTOR VEHICLE ROLLOVER RATING SYSTEM

First Meeting
Wednesday, April 11 and Thursday, April 12, 2001

Meeting location:

National Academy of Sciences
Main Building, Room 250
2101 Constitution Avenue, NW
Washington, DC 20418
Tel: 202/334-2250

 Hotel:

State Plaza Hotel
2117 E Street, NW
Washington, DC
Tel: 202/861-8200

AGENDA

Meeting objectives

  • Review statement of task and agree on work plan, including dates for future meetings
  • Identify issues relating to analysis and interpretation of data on rollover crashes
  • Identify issues associated with static and dynamic vehicle testing
  • Review rationale for NHTSA's rollover resistance star rating and consider alternative approaches

Wednesday, April 11, 2001

CLOSED SESSION (for committee members and staff only)

8:00 am  Continental breakfast
8:30 amWelcome and introductions, Chairman
Review of meeting objectives, Chairman
Meeting logistics, TRB staff
  • Open vs. closed sessions
  • Invited guests
  • Presence of observers at open sessions
  • Arrangements for lunch, dinner, etc.
8:45 amStatement of task, study schedule, and proposed work plan, Group discussion
  • background to study
  • major issues - preliminary thoughts
  • subject matter to be reviewed
  • sources of information
  • interested parties and their input to the study process
  • study schedule
  • timing of future meetings
  • reports - interim and final
  • audience for reports
  • writing the reports - logistics, committee and staff roles, etc.
  • report review
  • etc., etc.
9:50 amResponding to questions from the media, Jenny Wenger, Office of News and Public Information [ONPI], The National Academies
10:00 amBREAK
10:15 amDiscussion of committee composition and balance (to be led by Steve Godwin, Director, TRB Studies and Information Services)
11:30 amOPEN SESSION
Introductions, Committee and invited guests
Committee's task, Chairman
11:40 amHISTORY OF NHTSA's RULEMAKING ON ROLLOVER
Safety problems and chronology of events Steve Kratzke, NHTSA
12 noonLUNCH
12:45 pmHISTORY OF NHTSA's RULEMAKING ON ROLLOVER(continued)
Rulemaking strategy, Pat Boyd, NHTSA
  • Strategic decisions and supporting rationale
  • Basis for star ratings of rollover resistance
  • Q&A
1:40 pmBREAK
1:45 pmACCIDENT DATA AND ANALYSES
Information on rollover crashes, Sue Partyka, NHTSA
  • Data sources - availability of information on rollover incidents, data limitations and uncertainties
  • Data analysis methods
  • Results of statistical analyses
  • Interpretation of results
2:15 pmComments on NHTSA's statistical analyses, Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers
2:45 pmGroup discussion on accident data and analyses
3:00 pmBREAK
3:15 pmCONSUMER INFORMATION ON MOTOR VEHICLE ROLLOVER
NHTSA's star rating system for motor vehicle rollover, Roger Kurrus and Mary Versailles, NHTSA
  • Development of NHTSA's rollover resistance ratings information
    • Research on advantages and disadvantages of star rating system compared to alternative approaches
    • Research on presenting the information to the consumer - rationale for NHTSA's approach
  • Current information and activities on rollover resistance ratings
    • Press advisory and video news release
    • Web site information available
    • Buying A Safer Car brochure
    • Public response: Web site hits and media exposure
    • Anecdotal feedback
3:40 pmComments on consumer information issues, Consumers Union
4:00 pmComments on consumer information issues, Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers
4:30 pm"Shopping for Safety", Granger Morgan, Carnegie Mellon University
Note: Dr Morgan chaired the NRC Committee for Study of Consumer Automotive Safety Information, which prepared the report Shopping for Safety: Providing Consumer Automotive Safety Information (TRB, 1996).
5:00 pmGroup discussion of consumer information issues
5:15 pmADJOURN
5:45 pmReception for committee members, guests and staff NAS Building, Executive Dining Room
CLOSED SESSION (for committee members and staff only)
7:00 pmDinner, NAS Building, Executive Dining Room
 

Thursday, April 12, 2001

OPEN SESSION

8:00 amContinental breakfast
8:30 amVEHICLE TESTING - GENERAL CONSIDERATIONS

Panel discussion of approaches to static and dynamic vehicle testing

  • Test methods and test facilities
  • Reliability and repeatability of results
  • Costs of testing
  • Relationship between test results and real world events
  • Static vs. dynamic testing
  • Role of modeling
  • Etc., etc.
Panel members: Riley Garrott, NHTSA
Pat Boyd, NHTSA
Representative(s) of Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers
Representative(s) of Consumers Union
9:30 amGroup discussion of issues relating to vehicle testing
10:15 amBREAK
10:30 amOpen discussion on issues relating to motor vehicle rollover and NHTSA's star rating system for rollover resistance
Note: This time is intended to provide an opportunity for meeting observers to address very brief remarks to the committee, if they wish to do so.
11:00 amSUGGESTIONS FOR ALTERNATIVE APPROACHES TO ASSESSING ROLLOVER RESISTANCE

Suggestions from the Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers, Alliance representatives

Suggestions from Consumers Union, CU representative(s)

Group discussion of possible alternative approaches to assessing rollover resistance

12:30 pmLUNCH
CLOSED SESSION (for committee members and staff only)
1:15 pmMajor points arising from meeting, Group discussion
2:30 pmNEXT STEPS
  • Revisit work plan and agree on any revisions
  • Review and revise strawman report outline
  • Next meeting
    • Finalize dates and location
    • Identify agenda items and possible guest speakers
  • Make assignments - data gathering, preliminary drafting, etc.
  • Other business
3:30 pmCLOSE OF MEETING