Driving Safety- What is the NHTSA?

A top agency promoting driving safety, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, or NHTSA, has been around for nearly 40 years. Originally a creation of the Highway Safety act of 1970, the NHTSA has taken over many of the duties previously delegated to the National Highway Safety Bureau.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has a broad-ranging set of goals, and engages in a wide spectrum of activities to generally improve safety on America's highways. They promote education about safety to all of America's citizens, including drivers, pedestrians and others who use public areas. The NHTSA conducts research and development, engages in outreach to the public through various media, and provides extensive comment on all of what's going on across the country in terms of transportation safety.

Safety Standards, Defects and Recalls

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration helps develop comprehensive safety standards for vehicles and their activity on highways. Part of what the NHTSA does is to look at all of the parts and systems that are used for transportation and identify any defects or potentially dangerous situations. The NHTSA may work with the state Departments of Transportation, or alternately, may contribute to better safety through public promotion of internally produced data. This organization may also generally be a resource in identifying product recalls that have a bearing on highway transportation safety, such as tire recalls.

The NHTSA and Vehicles

The NHTSA is involved in many different types of studies in which groups monitor vehicle safety or fuel economy. The NHTSA is active in promoting good fuel economy in vehicles through Corporate Average Fuel Economy, or CAFE, standards.

Some of the many activities that the NHTSA is involved in regarding vehicle safety include studying and eliminating auto theft, and preventing odometer fraud. One of the main ways that the NHTSA is helping with epidemics of auto theft is in promoting security for VIN, or vehicle identification numbers. A good VIN system helps prevent some of the rampant auto theft situations that are cropping up today in America.

Safe Driving Practices

The NHTSA is also involved in promoting safe driving. The agency observes data associated with impaired driving to analyze ways to prevent its potentially deadly effects. Another important aspect of the NHTSA is to rate individual vehicles in terms of a “crash rating,” which aids consumers choose the safest vehicles on the market. It is also active in promoting the newest safety features that will help protect drivers and passengers in the vehicles of today and tomorrow. One of these is the LATCH, or Lower Anchors and Tethers for Children, system that is now standard on many new vehicles.

Along with all of the above, the NHTSA is involved in motorcycle, school bus, bicycle and pedestrian safety issues. It helps with speed enforcement and emergency medical services, as well as driver licensing systems. The NHTSA also helps develop Highway Safety Grant programs. This and much more makes the NHTSA a very central force in protecting all of America's citizens from harm on all of the roadways across the country.