The Air Bag Is No Enemy
The federal government has taken the risky but necessary step of allowing motorists the option of turning off the air bags in their cars, trucks, vans and sport utility vehicles. That decision, announced Tuesday by Transportation Secretary Rodney Slater, was based on the disclosure of the dangers the bags pose to infants, small children and small adults.
More than 80 small children and adults have died from the explosive deployment of the bags. But about 2,600 lives have been saved by air bags since they were introduced in the United States, authorities estimate, and the bags can prevent serious head and chest injuries.
Such statistics ought to make motorists pause before they take steps to turn off their air bags. Automotive and medical studies show there are few situations in which the air bags should be disabled. And the danger posed by the bags often can be reduced in less drastic ways.
The National Highway Transportation Safety Administration has approved four “at risk” categories: motorists with certain medical conditions such as spine-deforming scoliosis, small adults who must sit within 10 inches of the steering wheel, families who must put an infant in a rear-facing safety seat in the front, perhaps because the vehicle has no rear seat, and families or carpoolers who can’t put every child 12 or younger in the rear seats.
Those who want the air bag switch must apply to the safety administration and wait for an authorization, which can be taken to a dealership for the installation of an on-off switch. (Call [800] 424-9393 for more information.)
But it’s also true that young children and infants should be placed in the rear seats if at all possible. Small adult front-seat passengers can avoid air bag problems by moving their seats away from the dashboard and/or by reclining the seat back. Small adult drivers can do the same, as long as they can still comfortably reach the steering wheel and pedals. Of course, all riders should wear seat belts.
Motorists now have a choice. Switching off the air bag is not necessarily the best one.
