Agency Request for Approval of a New Information Collection: Recruitment and Debriefing of Human Subjects for Field Study on Vehicle Occupant Protection Technologies |
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Nathaniel Beuse
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
March 13, 2014
[Federal Register Volume 79, Number 49 (Thursday, March 13, 2014)]
[Notices]
[Pages 14335-14337]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2014-05368]
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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
[Docket No. NHTSA-2014-0025]
Agency Request for Approval of a New Information Collection:
Recruitment and Debriefing of Human Subjects for Field Study on Vehicle
Occupant Protection Technologies
AGENCY: National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, DOT.
ACTION: Request for public comments on a proposed collection of
information.
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SUMMARY: The Department of Transportation (DOT) invites public comments
about our intention to request Office of Management and Budget (OMB)
approval for a new information collection. The information collection
involves eligibility, demographic, and debriefing questionnaires. The
information will be used to recruit participants for a field study on
vehicle occupant protection technologies and to get information from
study participants about their experience with such technologies. The
study focuses on occupant protection technologies that restrict some
vehicle functionality, permanently or temporarily, when they detect
that a vehicle occupant is not wearing a seat belt.
DATES: Written comments should be submitted by May 12, 2014.
ADDRESSES: You may submit comments identified by Docket No. NHTSA-2014-
0025 through one of the following methods:
Federal eRulemaking Portal: Go to http://www.regulations.gov. Follow the online instructions for submitting
comments.
Mail or Hand Delivery: Docket Management Facility, US
Department of Transportation, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE., West Building
Ground Floor, Room W12-140, Washington, DC 20590 between 9 a.m. and 5
p.m. Eastern Time, Monday through Friday, except Federal holidays.
Telephone: 202-366-9826.
Fax: 202-493-2251.
Instructions: All submission must include the agency name and
docket number for this proposed collection of information. Note that
all comments received will be posted without change to http://www.regulation.gov, including any personal information provided. Please
see the Privacy heading below.
Privacy Act: Anyone is able to search the electronic form of all
comments received into any of our dockets by the name of the individual
submitting the
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comment (or signing the comment, if submitted on behalf of an
association, business, labor union, etc.). You may review DOT's
complete Privacy Act Statement in the Federal Register published on
April 11, 2000 (65 FR 19477-78) or you may visit http://www.dot.gov/privacy.html .
Docket: For access to the docket to read comments received, go to
http://www.regulations.gov, or the street address listed above. Follow
the online instructions for accessing the dockets.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For access to background documents,
contact Lisandra Garay-Vega, Ph.D.; 202-366-1412 Vehicle Safety
Research, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, U.S.
Department of Transportation, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE., Washington,
DC 20590.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Under the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995,
before an agency submits a proposed collection of information to OMB
for approval, it must first publish a document in the Federal Register
providing a 60-day comment period and otherwise consult with members of
the public and affected agencies concerning each proposed collection of
information. The OMB has promulgated regulations describing what must
be included in such a document. Under OMB's regulation (at 5 CFR
1320.8(d)), an agency must ask for public comment on the following:
(i) Whether the proposed collection of information is necessary for
the proper performance of the functions of the agency, including
whether the information will have practical utility;
(ii) The accuracy of the agency's estimate of the burden of the
proposed collection of information, including the validity of the
methodology and assumptions used;
(iii) How to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the
information to be collected;
(iv) How to minimize the burden of the collection of information on
those who are to respond, including the use of appropriate automated,
electronic, mechanical, or other technological collection techniques or
other forms of information technology, e.g. permitting electronic
submission of responses.
In compliance with these requirements, NHTSA asks for public
comments on the following proposed collection of information for which
the agency is seeking approval from OMB:
OMB Control Number: Not assigned.
Title: Recruitment and Debriefing of Human Subjects for Field Test
of Vehicle Occupant Protection Technologies
Form Numbers: None.
Type of Review: New Information Collection
Background: NHTSA's mission is to save lives, prevent injuries, and
reduce economic losses resulting from motor vehicle crashes. Increasing
seat belt use is one of the agency's highest priorities. Seat belt use
has shown an increasing trend since 1995, accompanied by a steady
decline in the percentage of unrestrained passenger vehicle occupant
fatalities during daytime. In 2013, the nationwide seat belt use
reached 87 percent for drivers and front seat passengers.\1\ Despite
gains in seat belt usage, data from the 2011 Fatality Analysis
Reporting System (FARS) indicates that 52 percent of all passenger
vehicle crash fatalities \2\ were unbelted occupants.\3\ The age group
21 to 24 had the highest percentage of unrestrained occupants killed:
2,172 fatalities, of which 1,385 (64%) were unrestrained. The second
highest percentage of unrestrained passenger vehicle occupant
fatalities was 63 percent among 25- to 34-year-olds.\c\ Use of lap/
shoulder seat belts reduce the risk of fatal injury to front-seat
passenger car occupants by 45 percent and the risk of moderate-to-
critical injury by 50 percent. In 2011 alone, seat belts saved an
estimated 11,949 lives.\c\
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\1\ Pickrell, T. M., & Liu, C. (2014, January). Seat Belt Use in
2013--Overall Results. (Traffic Safety Facts Research Note. Report
No. DOT HS 811 875). Washington, DC: National Highway Traffic Safety
Administration.
\2\ The 2012 and 2013 data on the percent of unrestrained
passenger vehicle occupant fatalities during daytime is not yet
available.
\3\ NHTSA. (2013, June) Occupant Protection (Traffic Safety
Facts 2011 Data. Report No.DOT HS 811 729). Washington, DC: National
Highway Traffic Safety Administration. http://www.nrd.nhtsa.dot.gov/Pubs/811729.pdf.
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The proposed study will examine seat belt use; users' acceptance of
emerging vehicle technologies designed to increase seat belt use;
likelihood and potential strategies to circumvent the system; and
unintended consequences. The study method consists of a field operation
test to collect objective and subjective data about two prototype
technologies developed by automakers to increase seat belt use. A total
of 32 drivers from two age groups will be recruited to participate in
the study, 16 non-seatbelt users (8 young drivers; 8 middle-aged
drivers), and 16 part-time users (8 young drivers; 8 middle-aged
drivers). The study sample will have equal numbers of male and female
drivers from each age group. The research team acknowledges that it may
not be possible to recruit non-users given the high seat belt use rate
in Michigan (more than 90%). Alternatively, the research team may
consider recruiting part-time users with different non-belt use
frequencies. The estimated burden hours are shown for 48 to 60
respondents to account for estimated dropout rates.
Each driver will be presented with one baseline condition and each
of the two vehicle occupant protection technologies. Each condition
will last one week. Therefore, each participant will drive the research
vehicles for three weeks. A data acquisition system will record system
state (i.e., door, ignition, driver seat belt buckle) and video inside
the vehicle cabin. The University of Michigan Transportation Research
Institute, in collaboration with the Virginia Tech Transportation
Institute and Montana State University, Western Transportation
Institute, will conduct this study under a research contract with the
NHTSA.
Description of the Need for the Information and Proposed Use of the
Information: The collection of information consists of: (1) An
eligibility questionnaire, (2) a demographic questionnaire; and (3)
post study questionnaires.
The information to be collected will be used to:
Eligibility questionnaire(s) will be used to obtain self-
reported driving history information. Individuals interested in
participating in the study will be asked to provide information about
their driving history. People who have been convicted of felony motor
convictions will be excluded. Individuals who pass the initial
screening will be asked to provide their driver license number and
consent to review their driving records to confirm self-reported
driving history information. Drivers' consent and driving license
numbers will be used to obtain official driving records from the state
of Michigan. Individuals will be excluded from participating in the
study if they refuse to grant UMTRI permission to review their public
driving records or if they have been convicted of felony motor
convictions in the last 2 years. This exclusion criterion is used to
reduce the liability risk of providing participants with research
vehicles.
Demographic questionnaire will be used to obtain
demographic information to confirm that the study group includes
participants from various groups (e.g., age; gender; part-time seat
belt users or those who sometimes wear their belts; non-users or those
who never wear a seat belt; etc. Other demographic information will be
collected to describe the study sample (e.g., annual travel distance).
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Post study questionnaire(s) will be used to get
information about drivers' beliefs and attitude towards each occupant
protection technology tested, and to identify potential problems
associated with each system. These questionnaires will also be used to
assess perceived usability of the systems in terms of acceptance and
satisfaction, as well as willingness to have this technology in their
vehicle. Each driver will complete a post study questionnaire twice,
one by the end of the second week and the other by the end of the third
week.
Respondents: Michigan drivers with a valid driver license.
Estimated Number of Respondents: 48 to 60
Estimated Number of Responses: One response per person to 25 to 160
questions total.
Estimated Total Annual Burden: 35 minutes per respondent (46 hours
total).
Estimated Frequency: one-time for the eligibility and demographic
questionnaire; two-times for the post study questionnaire.
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\4\ The number of respondents in this table includes drop-out
rates.
\5\ Estimated based on the mean hourly rate for Michigan (all
occupations) is $21.14 as reported in the May 2011 Occupational
Employment and Wage Estimates, Bureau of Labor Statistics. http://www.bls.gov/oes/oes_dl.htm.
Table 1--Estimated Burden Hours
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Estimated Total
Number of Frequency of Number of individual Total annualize cost
Instrument respondents responses questions burden estimated to respondents
\4\ (minutes) burden hours \5\
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Eligibility questionnaire............................... 60 1 25 10 10 $211.40
Demographic questionnaire............................... 48 1 15 5 4 84.56
Post study questionnaire................................ 48 2 60 20 32 676.48
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Total............................................... 46 972.44
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Public Comments Invited: You are asked to comment on any aspect of
this information collection, including (a) Whether the proposed
collection of information is necessary for the Department's
performance; (b) the accuracy of the estimated burden; (c) ways for the
Department to enhance the quality, utility and clarity of the
information collection; and (d) ways that the burden could be minimized
without reducing the quality of the collected information. The agency
will summarize and/or include your comments in the request for OMB's
clearance of this information collection.
Authority: The Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, 44. U.S.C.
Chapter 35, as amended; 5 CFR part 1320; and 49 CFR 1.95.
Nathaniel Beuse,
Associate Administrator for Vehicle Safety Research.
[FR Doc. 2014-05368 Filed 3-12-14; 8:45 am]
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