Secretary Anthony Foxx

Remarks at the Society of Automotive Engineers
Washington, DC • January 22, 2015

Remarks as prepared for delivery

Thanks, everybody… Thanks to the folks at SAE… And thank you, Mark [Rosekind], for that introduction.

Two nights ago, the President gave the State of the Union. (I wasn’t there. I was the one Cabinet secretary kept at a – quote – “undisclosed location” for security reasons. Which is sort of like being asked to stay home from the prom… and then having to watch that prom… alone… on live TV).

Anyway, one of the things the President spoke about was securing, for this country, the jobs of the next generation. “There are… millions of Americans who work in jobs that didn’t even exist ten or twenty years ago,” he said, “jobs at companies like Google, and eBay, and Tesla.”

The list of companies ended there, but the speechwriters could’ve easily added to it, with Ford… and Chrysler… and all the companies that employ you. Because it’s no secret that the auto industry is becoming a capital of the tech world... that there’s a little bit of Silicon Valley in Detroit… and that some of the auto technologies being developed today, like V2V, have the potential to spawn whole new industries tomorrow.

So the President is right to be bullish about the technology developed in – and coming out of – the auto industry. In this administration, we’re bullish about it because it creates jobs… because it sparks growth… because it secures the industries of the future.

Today, though, I want to emphasize the most important reason we’re bullish about it – and why we’ll continue to look to the auto industry to move these technologies as quickly as you can from the lab to the streets: The reason is simple. They. Save. Lives.

At DOT, safety isn’t just our first priority – it’s our vision for the future.

We have a vision of America where driving on the roads is as risky as driving  in one of those games in an arcade… where car crashes are as much a part of the past as horse-and-buggy accidents… and where everyone gets from A to B without visiting the ER in the middle.

But we know the only way we can make this real… is if industry and government get on the same page, and work together.

We have proof of this.

Today, I can announce: NHTSA is releasing a report that crunches 52 years of data, from 1960 to 2012. I’ll give you the executive summary:

Over the last half-century technologies that improve safety – and, just as important, standards that ensure those technologies are implemented – have saved a population roughly as big as this city’s.

614,000 lives have been saved in America because we have required that drivers have the safest, latest technology installed in their cars… from seat belts decades ago to electronic stability control.

This is certainly an accomplishment for industry. Creating technology that saves hundreds of thousands of lives is a service to humanity.

But it also speaks to the role of government.

614,000 lives is prove that rules that ensure cars have the best technology IS government we need. And it’s government all of us should want… because ultimately, drivers reward the car companies that care about THEM. And you have a sacred responsibility to keep drivers safe.

 So, today, I’m here to say… let’s continue on with this legacy.

Today, DOT’s announcing another step that will take us closer to a future where auto fatalities are a thing of the past.   

NHTSA is announcing its plan to add Automatic Emergency Braking – or AEB – to the list of Recommended Advanced Technology Features under the New Car Assessment Program.

As you know, AEB is a catch-all term for systems that use cameras and radar to detect when a car is at risk of rear-ending another car. Then, those systems automatically engage the brakes to avoid the crash or lessen the damage.

NHTSA’s announcement covers two types of AEB systems in particular. The first: Crash Imminent Braking (CIB), which applies the brakes in cases where a crash is imminent and the driver isn’t taking action.

The second type is: Dynamic Brake Support (DBS), which kicks in if a driver isn’t applying the brakes strongly enough to avoid a crash and supplements the driver’s braking input.

Both of these systems will be included in our New Car Assessment Program, which is best known for rating cars out of five stars. The program, however, also includes a checklist of advanced safety features, which allows new-car buyers to easily compare models – and encourages manufacturers to include those technologies. And the plan is for these new AEB systems to be on that checklist.

So I’ll end my remarks there, except to say this: When it comes to the auto industry and auto regulators, we all know what the general narrative has been over the last few months – we know about the recalls and the penalties.

And make no mistake, DOT will never relent in making sure automakers alert us when unsafe cars are on the road. We’re going to be aggressive about safety.

But being aggressive about safety doesn’t just mean being aggressive about compliance. Saving lives is the goal. And oversight matters just as much as foresight… as in looking past the cutting-edge of technology and inventing the next, life-saving innovation. The next seatbelt. The AEB.

In this administration, we are bullish about the future of America because we are bullish on the future of the American auto industry. That’s why, when the industry was in jeopardy, we stepped in and saved it – because we believed the investment would pay off.

And I believe it will pay off many times over in the years to come.

After all, a life saved is priceless.

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