Document jB8qejoyqYn6OMDmkYxqLLkpk

64 1956 National Safety Congress Membership Requirements and Benefits The organization shall take the following form: Any interested group or individual may be admitted to membership on request. Since many organizations are restricted from^ paying dues to other organizations or associations, no dues should be required for membership. Many of these represent or ganizations of the type desired as active members of the committee and whose con tributions are important to civic action for traffic safety. Benefits to members should include: 1. The advantage, insofar as possible, oi the Council's consultation services and field, services. 2. Special consideration and arrangements during planning and execution of Congress programs. 3. Eligibility to receive from the National Safety Council a regular newsletter slanted to the primary interests of the committee. 4. Receipts of first-hand information of all available materials m the field. Advisory Members To give the committee considerations the advantage of authoritative advice in areas where activities coincide, advisory members shall be appointed annually: From the Conference of Organizations. Safety From the Public Information Conference. From the Traffic and Transportation Con ference. From Women's Activities Conference. Firm Labor Conference. Officers Officers of the Committee on Civic Action for Traffic Safety shall be elected annually and shall consist of: Chairman Vice Chairmen Secretary (from committee membership) Chairman of the Executive Committee Chairman of the Nominating Committee Chairman of the Program Committee Study and sub-committee chairman (se lected as directed and as needed by the committee to conduct its business and ac tivities) Liaison shall be maintained between staff and the committee by the appointment by the National Safety Council of a staff rep resentative to serve the full committee. This person shall be designated by Ute Director, Public Safety Education Division, National Safety He Governing Committee It is the intent to establish a group em powered to conduct its own business and elect its own officers. Accordingly, the af fairs of the full committee shall be gov erned by an executive committee of about 24 members selected from the full committee membership. Executive committee members could serve three years, right to be selected each year. Stndy and Sub-Committees Necessary study committees needed to guide and advise the executive committee in its administration of committee business may be appointed by the chairman of the executive committee. Subcommittees, as the need arises, may be appointed by the chairman of the full committee upon recommendation of the full committee. Meetings At least one annual meeting shall be held during each annual National' Safety Con gress, at which rime election of officers shall be held. Other meetings of the full committee or sub-committees shall be held throughout the year as needs and activities dictate. 65 Open Discussion Groups Automotive Accident Injury Prevention Discussion Leader: John O. Moore, Dir., Automotive Crash Injury Research, Cor nell U. Medical College. About 50 persons attended the discussions on techniques available for reduction of automobile-accident injuries. Questions proposed by the group dealt with the tendency of the public to buy automobiles which had optional equipment designed especially for reducing accident injuries. Representative of Ford Motor Company said that 7 per cent of their gross sales during the past year had been purchased with optional seat-belt equipment, an indi cation of public acceptance. Data was presented by members indicat ing the frequency of reduction of injuries and fatalities observed in accidents involv ing 1956-model ~ar*. It was the consensus of the discussion group that no single device offers a complete answer to the accidentinjnry problem. It was printed out that the seat belt is the most important device avail able for controlling injuries in the event of an accident. Time was spent discussing methocs of obtaining acceptance of safety belts by large fleet organizations as well as bv the gen eral public The translation of injuries into economic-loss figures should be employed in convincing the public of the wisdom of buying devices designed for control of in jury, in accidents, the group agreed. There has been a gratifying response from the public in marry parts of the country with regard to installation and use of seat belts. The question of the strength of safety belts was discussed. It was agreed that there was a need for data on the limits of hTTmarl tolerance before belts of high-breaking strength were offered. A review of the present status of Society of Automotive Engineers recommendation practices was nude by members of the SAE Seat-Belt Committee. It was reported that work was presently being done to develop SAE recommendation practice on anchorage of safety belts. It was reported that there was no effort at the present time to indicate that safety belts have actually produced internal in juries. Consensus of the group was that we are approaching an era where safety devices can be accepted n the reduction of injuries and deaths from traffic accidents. Problem Drivers--Their Identification and Treatment Discussion Leader: John C. Kerrick. Mgr., to die over-all traffic-safety program. I will Driver's License Div,, Salem. Ore. tell you why this is true. Problem Drivers I will report on the most important and potentially the most far-reaching subject considered by our group, that of dealing with the relationship betweoi a print system and a complete driver-improvement program in approaching the subject of problem driv ers. It is possible that some persons in this room have heard of point systems used in dealing w*ith problem drivers, but who have never heard of driver improvement. If that is true, it can be dangerous and detrimental Print systems have been so widely publi cized during recent years that many per sons now regard a point system alone as representing a Driver-Improvement pro gram. This most certainly represents over simplification of a program which, poten tially. is one of the most powerful and effective in the entire traffic-safety field. A point system can have a definite and important place in a driver-improvement program, but it is of vital importance that this place be recognized and evaluated cor rectly.