Snowe praises safety tests for passenger vans

WASHINGTON – U.S. Sen. Olympia Snowe, a proponent of additional safety testing for 15-passenger vans, Tuesday praised tougher standards being implemented by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration as part of its enhancements of rollover testing for cars and SUVs.

At issue is a provision of the Transportation Recall Enhancement, Accountability and Documentation Act of 2000, which was enactedafter the Firestone tire scandal. It requires NHTSA to develop a test on rollovers to supplement an existing consumer information program.

As part of this effort, NHTSA plans to conduct an evaluation of 15-passenger vans’ rollover susceptibility at different loading conditions and evaluate available electronic stability control systems on the vehicles.

“It’s been a long time coming,” said Snowe, who proposed tougher regulations on 15-passenger vans earlier this year, after 14 migrant workers drowned when their van plunged into the Allagash Wilderness Waterway at John’s Bridge, Maine.

“But NHTSA’s promise to evaluate rollover susceptibility and test available electronic stability control measures on the vehicles is an important step in ensuring that an accident like the John’s Bridge tragedy won’t be repeated,” Snowe said.