P.M. BRIEFING : Greater Utility Vehicle Safety Urged
Members of the Senate Commerce Committee today urged Transportation Secretary Samuel K. Skinner to impose tougher safety standards on small passenger vans, light trucks and sport utility vehicles.
The senators said many of the 8,300 deaths and 500,000 injuries from accidents in mini-vans and other utility vehicles in 1988 could have been avoided if the vehicles had the same safety standards required in passenger cars for many years.
These include better side-impact protection, improved stability against roll-overs, head restraints, minimum roof crush resistance, high center-mounted brake lights and automatic seat belts or air bags.
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