FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: December 6, 2022
CONTACT: Allison Kennedy / akennedy@saferoads.org / 360-281-7033 (C)
Advocates for Highway and Auto Safety (Advocates)
Recognizes Safety Leaders
Today, Advocates for Highway and Auto Safety (Advocates) will bestow awards to a number of recipients who have championed roadway safety. Members of Congress, state government leaders, and citizen activists who have fought tirelessly to achieve safe vehicles, safe road users, and safe roads will be honored for their efforts at a reception on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C.
The Senator Frank R. Lautenberg Highway Safety Leadership Award, first commissioned in 2014 to honor the late Senator’s lifesaving legacy, is being presented to Members of Congress who led efforts to achieve a directive that the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) require new vehicles be equipped with proven vehicle safety technology including automatic emergency braking (AEB). The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) has found this technology holds remarkable promise to reduce crashes, and it should be standard equipment for every new car buyer regardless of whether you buy a luxury or a standard model. Requiring this technology will ensure that more families have access to the safest braking systems more quickly and that it meets a government safety standard. Those receiving this award are: Senators Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) and Richard Durbin (D-IL) and Representatives Cheri Bustos (D-IL) and Jan Schakowsky (D-IL).
Advocates is also proud to present a Highway Safety Hero – Lifetime Achievement Award to two retiring Members of Congress for their impressive tenure working on behalf of safety throughout their time in public service: Representative Peter DeFazio (D-OR), Chair of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, and Representative David Price (D-NC), Chair of the House Appropriations Committee Subcommittee on Transportation, and Housing and Urban Development, and Related Agencies.
Additionally, Advocates will be celebrating the one-year anniversary of the signing of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA, Pub. L. 117-58) by recognizing Members of Congress integral to achieving the numerous safety successes enacted as part of the bipartisan infrastructure law. The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act Safety Hero awardees are: Senate Majority Leader Charles Schumer (D-NY), Sens. Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), Thomas Carper (D-DE), Maria Cantwell (D-WA), Dianne Feinstein (D-CA), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY), Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), Ben Ray Luján (D-NM), Edward Markey (D-MA), Marco Rubio (R-FL) and Rick Scott (R-FL), Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D-CA), Representatives Steve Cohen (D-TN), Mark DeSaulnier (D-CA), Debbie Dingell (D-MI), Jesús “Chuy” García (D-IL), Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC), Raja Krishnamoorthi (D-IL), James McGovern (D-MA), David McKinley (R-WV), Frank Pallone, Jr. (D-NJ), Kathleen Rice (D-NY), Tim Ryan (D-OH), Elise Stefanik (R-NY), and Paul Tonko (D-NY), and NY Lt. Governor Antonio Delgado (D).
Others will be celebrated for their contributions to safety with a Highway Safety Hero award including state officials and citizen activists: NJ Senator Nilsa Cruz-Perez (D), NJ Assemblyman Daniel Benson (D), NV Assemblywoman Shannon Bilbray-Axelrod (D), KY Representative James Tipton (R), MA Governor Charlie Baker (R), OH Governor Mike DeWine (R), NY Governor Kathy Hochul (D), MD Governor Larry Hogan (R), Amy Cohen of Families for Safe Streets who has been fighting for a myriad of safety improvements following the loss of her son Sammy, Norm Collins Sr., PhD who has advocated to prevent pediatric vehicular heatstroke following the death of his grandson Bishop in a hot car, Eileen Kosc who has sought truck safety advances following a crash that killed her son Bryan, Jennifer Smith of StopDistractions.org whose mother Linda was killed in a distracted driving crash, Rana Abbas Taylor who lost her sister Rima, brother-in-law Issam, nephew and two nieces in a drunk driving crash, Andrew and Elizabeth Warner whose daughter Taylor was killed in a seat back collapse, and Carol Tyson of the Disability Rights Education & Defense Fund who has advocated for accessible and safe transportation for all road users.
The Clarence M. Ditlow III Safety Champion award will be given to Adina Rosenbaum of the Public Citizen Litigation Group. This award was first established to commemorate the advocacy of Clarence Ditlow, who served as the long-time Executive Director of the formidable Center for Auto Safety, following his passing in 2016.
Advocates congratulates all of the award recipients and looks forward to continuing our work together to prevent motor vehicle crashes which claimed 42,915 lives last year.
Advocates for Highway and Auto Safety is an alliance of consumer, medical, public health, law enforcement, and safety groups and insurance companies and agents working together to improve road safety in the U.S. Advocates’ mission is the adoption of federal and state laws, policies and programs that prevent motor vehicle crashes, save lives, reduce injuries, and contain costs.
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