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Suggested Citation:"Study Committee Biographical Information." Transportation Research Board. 2002. An Assessment of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's Rating System for Rollover Resistance: Special Report 265. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/10308.
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Study Committee Biographical Information

David N. Wormley, Chair, is Dean of the College of Engineering at The Pennsylvania State University. His previous positions include Associate Dean of Engineering and Head of the Department of Mechanical Engineering at Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Dr. Wormley’s research focuses on the dynamic analysis, optimization, and design of advanced control systems, transportation systems, and fossil fuel energy systems. Dr. Wormley is a Fellow of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) and serves as Vice President of ASME’s Systems and Design Group. He is also on the editorial board of the International Journal of Vehicle Mechanics and Mobility. Dr. Wormley is a former member of the Executive Committee of the Transportation Research Board, which he chaired in 1997. He has received the ASME Lewis Moody Award and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration’s Certificate of Recognition. Dr. Wormley obtained B.S., M.S., and Ph.D. degrees in mechanical engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.


Karin M. Bauer is a Principal Statistician at Midwest Research Institute, Kansas City, Missouri. Her research in transportation engineering addresses highway and traffic safety, and has included the development of statistical models for defining relationships between accidents and various highway design elements. She has investigated traffic conflict and accident relationships, traffic safety problems on rural highways, technological advances to deter speeding, accident reduction benefits of clear recovery zones, and predictor models for seasonal variation in pavement skid resistance. Ms. Bauer received a B.S. in mathematics and physics from the University of Strasbourg, France; a B.S. in statistics from the University of Dortmund, Germany; and an M.S. in applied statistics, also from the University of Dortmund.


James E. Bernard is Anson Marston Distinguished Professor of Engineering at Iowa State University and Director of the Virtual Reality Applications Center. His research interests include vehicle dynamics and driving simulation, and he is a member of the Vehicle Dynamics Subcommittee of the Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE). He has written many papers relating to motor vehicle rollover and associated vehicle test methods, including a comprehensive literature review. Dr. Bernard has received several awards for his contributions to graduate and undergraduate teaching, including the SAE Ralph R. Teetor Award for “significant contributions to teaching, research and student development.” He has received awards for his technical research papers from Tire Science and Technology and the MSC NASTRAN World Users

Page 132
Suggested Citation:"Study Committee Biographical Information." Transportation Research Board. 2002. An Assessment of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's Rating System for Rollover Resistance: Special Report 265. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/10308.
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Conference. Dr. Bernard held positions at the University of Michigan and Michigan State University before moving to Iowa State University as Professor and Chairman of Mechanical Engineering in 1983. He received B.S., M.S., and Ph.D. degrees in engineering mechanics from the University of Michigan.


Ann Bostrom is Associate Professor in the School of Public Policy at the Georgia Institute of Technology. During the period 1999–2001 she served as program director for the Decision, Risk, and Management Science program at the National Science Foundation. Her research interests include risk perception, communication and management, and cognitive aspects of survey methodology, with particular emphasis on how people understand and make decisions about risks. She served as a member of the National Research Council’s Committee for Study of Consumer Automotive Safety Information, which produced Special Report 248: Shopping for Safety: Providing Consumer Automotive Safety Information. Dr. Bostrom is a member of the executive committee of the Board of Scientific Counselors for the Office of Research and Development of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and chair of the Risk Communications Specialty group in the international Society for Risk Analysis. She received a B.A. in English from the University of Washington, an M.B.A. from Western Washington University, and a Ph.D. in public policy analysis from Carnegie Mellon University.


Susan A. Ferguson is Senior Vice President, Research, at the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety. Since joining the Institute in 1991, she has been involved in a range of studies addressing driver, vehicle, and roadway issues, including alcohol-impaired driving, airbag performance, graduated licensing, and the meaning of vehicle safety to consumers. Dr. Ferguson chairs the Blue Ribbon Panel on Advanced Airbag Performance and is a member of several other professional committees, including the Advisory Board of the Harvard Center for Risk Analysis and the Advisory Board of the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, Partners for Child Passenger Safety. She is also a member of the Transportation Research Board’s committees on Alcohol, Other Drugs, and Transportation and on Women and Transportation. Dr. Ferguson received a B.A. in psychology from the Open University in England, and a Ph.D. in experimental psychology from The George Washington University.


B. John Garrick [NAE], independent consultant, was a cofounder of PLG, Inc., an international engineering, applied science, and management consulting firm formerly in Newport Beach, California. He retired as the company’s president and chief executive officer in 1997. His professional interests involve risk assessment in fields such as nuclear energy, space and defense, chemicals and petroleum, and transportation. He is a past president of the international Society for Risk Analysis. Dr. Garrick is a fellow of three professional societies and has received many awards, including the Distinguished Achievement

Page 133
Suggested Citation:"Study Committee Biographical Information." Transportation Research Board. 2002. An Assessment of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's Rating System for Rollover Resistance: Special Report 265. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/10308.
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Award from the Society for Risk Analysis. He was appointed to the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission’s Advisory Committee on Nuclear Waste in 1994, and now serves as chairman. He has served on and chaired several committees of the National Research Council. Dr. Garrick was elected to the National Academy of Engineering in 1993 and is a registered professional engineer in the state of California. He received a B.S. in physics from Brigham Young University and M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in engineering and applied science from the University of California, Los Angeles. He is a graduate of the Oak Ridge School of Reactor Technology.


Paul A. Green is Senior Research Scientist in the Human Factors Division of the University of Michigan Transportation Research Institute, where he leads the Driver Interface Group. He is also Adjunct Associate Professor in the Industrial and Operations Engineering and the Mechanical Engineering departments of the University of Michigan. Dr. Green conducts research on human factors and ergonomics issues pertaining to driver interaction with future automotive information systems, as well as basic investigations of how people drive, driver workload, and driver eye fixations. He is a member of the Society of Automotive Engineers’ Safety and Human Factors Committee. His awards include the National Safety Council’s Howard Pyle Fellowship for Safety Research and two oral presentation awards from the Society of Automotive Engineers. Dr. Green received a B.S. in mechanical engineering from Drexel University, followed by an M.S.E. in industrial and operations engineering, an M.A. in psychology, and a Ph.D. in industrial and operations engineering and psychology, all from the University of Michigan.


David L. Harkey is Manager of Engineering Studies at the University of North Carolina Highway Safety Research Center. His research interests include highway safety, roadway geometrics and design, roadside safety, and traffic operations. He recently completed a study for the Federal Highway Administration on the causes of, and potential countermeasures for, motor vehicle rollover collisions. He is currently participating in the Highway Safety Information System project, for which he is conducting multiple crash analyses, developing a geographic information system–based program for highway safety analysis, and evaluating automated data collection systems. Mr. Harkey has taught more than 20 workshops on the application of the Older Driver Highway Design Handbook, which addresses changes in the driving environment to enhance the safety and mobility of older drivers and pedestrians. Mr. Harkey received a B.S. in civil engineering and an M.S. in transportation engineering, both from the University of North Carolina at Charlotte.


J. Karl Hedrick is James Marshall Wells Professor and Chairman of Mechanical Engineering at the University of California, Berkeley. He is also the Director of the University of California Partners for Advanced Transit and

Page 134
Suggested Citation:"Study Committee Biographical Information." Transportation Research Board. 2002. An Assessment of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's Rating System for Rollover Resistance: Special Report 265. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/10308.
×

Highways Research Center. Before moving to Berkeley, Dr. Hedrick was Professor of Mechanical Engineering at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, where he was Director of the Vehicle Dynamics Laboratory. His research addresses the development of advanced control theory and its application to a broad variety of transportation systems, including automated highway systems, collision warning systems, collision avoidance systems, and adaptive cruise control. He is Vice President and a member of the Board of Directors of the International Association of Vehicle System Dynamics, and editor of the Vehicle Systems Dynamics Journal. Dr. Hedrick received a B.S. in engineering mechanics from the University of Michigan, and M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in aerospace and astronautics engineering from Stanford University.


David C. Holloway is Professor of Mechanical Engineering at the University of Maryland and Director of the Center of Graduate Automotive Technology Education. He is responsible for courses in vehicle dynamics and hybrid electric vehicles, and he has worked with student teams in building different cars to participate in national competitions, including the Methanol Marathon (1989–1990), the Grand Solar Challenge (1992), Sunrayce (1993 and 1995), and the Future Car Challenge (1996–1999). Dr. Holloway’s research interests include advanced automotive propulsion systems, hybrid electric vehicles, vehicle simulation, and tire technology, and he has conducted work on the vehicle dynamics of all-terrain vehicles under the sponsorship of the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission. In 1997, he served as President of the Society of Automotive Engineers. Dr. Holloway received B.S., M.S., and Ph.D. degrees from the University of Illinois, Department of Theoretical and Applied Mechanics.


L. Daniel Metz is President of Metz Engineering and Racing and Professor Emeritus in the Department of General Engineering at the University of Illinois, Urbana–Champaign. His research interests include simulation of driver– automobile dynamic behavior, human control performance, and vehicle dynamics and aerodynamics. Dr. Metz’ many publications include several articles on motor vehicle rollover. He has been a technical consultant in accident analysis and reconstruction and in vehicle dynamics for more than 30 years, and was chief vehicle dynamics consultant for the design of the U.S. Grand Prix Indianapolis Motor Speedway Formula One course. Dr. Metz teaches nationally recognized seminars in automobile vehicle dynamics under the sponsorship of the Society of Automotive Engineers. He spent almost 30 years as a faculty member at the University of Illinois, Urbana–Champaign, during which time he received several awards for teaching excellence. Dr. Metz received a B.S. from the University of Cincinnati, an M.S. from the University of Detroit, and a Ph.D. from Cornell University, all in mechanical engineering.

Page 135
Suggested Citation:"Study Committee Biographical Information." Transportation Research Board. 2002. An Assessment of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's Rating System for Rollover Resistance: Special Report 265. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/10308.
×

N. Eugene Savin is Professor in the Department of Economics at the University of Iowa, a position he has held since 1986. He previously held a variety of academic teaching positions in the United States and Europe, including Lecturer and Reader at the University of Cambridge, England. His fields of specialization include economic statistics, econometrics, general economic theory, and economic history. He has published extensively in a wide range of peer-reviewed journals and has authored chapters of several books. Dr. Savin served for 10 years as Associate Editor of the Journal of Econometrics, and he has taught seminars on econometrics in the United States and overseas. His academic awards and distinctions include Fellow of the Econometric Society (1985) and a Teaching Excellence Award from the University of Iowa in 1990. Dr. Savin received a B.A. in economics, an M.A. in statistics, and a Ph.D. in economics, all from the University of California, Berkeley.


Kimberly M. Thompson is Assistant Professor of Risk Analysis and Decision Science at Harvard University, School of Public Health. Her research interests and teaching focus on issues related to developing and applying quantitative methods for risk assessment and risk management, and on consideration of the public policy implications associated with including uncertainty and variability in risk characterization. Dr. Thompson has also investigated the characterization of information and communication of risks, and she recently developed a guide to help consumers take charge of health information. She is a member of the International Society of Exposure Analysis, the Risk Assessment and Policy Association, and the Society for Risk Analysis. Dr. Thompson received a B.S. in chemical engineering and an M.S. in chemical engineering practice from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and an Sc.D. in environmental health from Harvard University.

Page 131
Suggested Citation:"Study Committee Biographical Information." Transportation Research Board. 2002. An Assessment of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's Rating System for Rollover Resistance: Special Report 265. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/10308.
×
Page 131
Page 132
Suggested Citation:"Study Committee Biographical Information." Transportation Research Board. 2002. An Assessment of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's Rating System for Rollover Resistance: Special Report 265. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/10308.
×
Page 132
Page 133
Suggested Citation:"Study Committee Biographical Information." Transportation Research Board. 2002. An Assessment of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's Rating System for Rollover Resistance: Special Report 265. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/10308.
×
Page 133
Page 134
Suggested Citation:"Study Committee Biographical Information." Transportation Research Board. 2002. An Assessment of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's Rating System for Rollover Resistance: Special Report 265. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/10308.
×
Page 134
Page 135
Suggested Citation:"Study Committee Biographical Information." Transportation Research Board. 2002. An Assessment of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's Rating System for Rollover Resistance: Special Report 265. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/10308.
×
Page 135
An Assessment of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's Rating System for Rollover Resistance: Special Report 265 Get This Book
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TRB Special Report 265 - An Assessment of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's Rating System for Rollover Resistance finds that the static stability factor is a useful indicator of a vehicle's propensity to roll over, but that U.S. government ratings for new cars, light trucks, and sport utility vehicles do not adequately reflect differences in rollover resistance shown by available crash data. According to the report, the five-star system should be revised to allow better discrimination among vehicles and incorporate results from road tests that measure vehicle control and handling characteristics.

Following the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's (NHTSA's) issuance of vehicle ratings to inform consumers about rollover risk, Congress requested a TRB study to evaluate the appropriateness of the rating system. Motor vehicle rollovers involving passenger cars, vans, pickup trucks, and sport utility vehicles result in approximately 10,000 deaths and 27,000 serious injuries each year in the United States. NHTSA developed a five-star rating system to inform consumers about the rollover resistance of passenger cars and light-duty passenger vehicle trucks.

After thoroughly evaluating NHTSA's development of the rating system, the committee that conducted this study concurred with the agency's reliance on a static measure of vehicle stability but pointed out some inadequacies of the statistical model used to relate this static measure to rollover risk. Alternative statistical approaches would provide a better approximation of risk. The rating system itself was found wanting. The procedures used to develop and test the ratings with consumers through focus groups did not provide credible evidence that consumers understood the message about the actual risk associated with a given vehicle. By being limited to only five levels, the system also discarded valuable information. The data developed by NHTSA could be refined to enable consumers to discriminate better among vehicle models with regard to their rollover experience.

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