GM Asks NHTSA To Mandate Daytime Running Lamps In All New Vehicles

DETROIT, Mich. - In anticipation of the arrival of winter on Dec. 21 - the shortest day of the year -- General Motors Corporation has asked the federal government to require all automakers to install daytime running lamps (DRLs) on new vehicles sold in the U.S.

Backed with research that proves daytime running lamps have significantly helped reduce the number of vehicle crashes, GM made the request in the form of a petition filed this morning with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) in Washington, D.C. The petition covers passenger vehicles, multipurpose passenger vehicles, trucks and buses.

"We have overwhelming evidence that daytime running lamps reduce crashes, thereby potentially saving lives and preventing thousands of injuries," said Robert C. Lange, GM Executive Director, Structure and Safety Integration. "DRLs are clearly one of the most cost-effective crash-avoidance features on the road today. The bottom line is that DRLs offer real benefits to motorists and improve roadway safety."

Last year, an independent study concluded that GM customers have avoided more than 17,000 vehicle crashes (GM estimates this figure has jumped to 25,000 since the study). This represents more than a 5-percent reduction in daytime, multi-vehicle non-rear-end collisions since the company began equipping vehicles with daytime running lamps in 1995.

"In addition to these types of crashes, we know that DRLs reduce urban daytime vehicle-to-pedestrian crashes by about 9 percent, and that many of these crashes involve children. We believe every new light-duty vehicle sold in the U.S. should be equipped with daytime running lamps so that these very apparent and documented safety benefits will be extended to everyone."

Lange pointed out that the first day of winter is a particularly appropriate time to remind motorists of the important role that lamps play in automotive safety.

Several other studies, including those conducted by the NHTSA; the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety; and European and Canadian transportation officials, have underscored the safety benefits of daytime running lamps. A NHTSA report released last year found that DRLs reduced daytime fatal single-vehicle pedestrian crashes by a whopping 28 percent.

Daytime running lamps are reduced-intensity lamps on the front of vehicles that automatically illuminate when a vehicle is started. They make the vehicle easier to see, by other drivers and pedestrians, in a variety of daytime conditions including fog, rain, dusk and bright sunlight. The measurable benefits of daytime running lamps are reinforced by real-world traffic safety statistics:

71 percent of all vehicle crashes involve two or more vehicles; 59 percent of multi-vehicle crashes are non-rear end collisions; and, 74 percent of all crashes occur during daylight, dawn or dusk. GM originally petitioned NHTSA in 1990 to allow the optional installation of DRLs, and NHTSA granted GM's request in 1993. GM began phasing in DRLs in 1995, making them standard equipment on virtually all light-duty vehicles by 1997. GM has sold more than 25 million vehicles equipped with DRLs. Several other automakers have followed GM's lead and made daytime running lamps available, either as a standard or optional feature.

Daytime running lamps are already mandatory in Canada, and in several European countries.

GM reminds motorists to turn on their low-beam headlamps for safety.