I 
110TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 5734 
To direct the Secretary of Transportation to study and establish a motor 
vehicle safety standard that provides for a means of alerting blind and 
other pedestrians of motor vehicle operation. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
APRIL 9, 2008 
Mr. TOWNS (for himself and Mr. STEARNS) introduced the following bill; 
which was referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce 
A BILL 
To direct the Secretary of Transportation to study and estab-
lish a motor vehicle safety standard that provides for 
a means of alerting blind and other pedestrians of motor 
vehicle operation. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Pedestrian Safety En-
hancement Act of 2008’’. 
SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS. 
As used in this Act— 
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(1) the term ‘‘Secretary’’ means the Secretary 
of Transportation; and 
(2) the term ‘‘motor vehicle’’ has the meaning 
given such term in section 30102(a)(6) of title 49, 
United States Code. 
SEC. 3. FINDINGS. 
Congress finds that— 
(1) motor vehicles designed to provide the desir-
able benefits of reducing harmful pollutants and op-
erating with greater fuel efficiency include gasoline- 
electric hybrid and electric-only vehicles, and in the 
foreseeable future may include vehicles powered by 
hydrogen fuel cell and other engine designs that rely 
on fuels and technologies other than the gasoline- 
powered internal combustion engine; 
(2) these vehicle engine designs operate or are 
likely to operate with virtually no sound being pro-
duced by the vehicle; 
(3) the total number of hybrid motor vehicles 
sold per year in the United States is growing dra-
matically, and may someday equal or exceed the 
number of internal combustion engine motor vehicles 
on the Nation’s roads; 
(4) blind pedestrians cannot locate and evaluate 
traffic by sight and instead must listen to traffic to 
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discern its speed, direction, and other attributes in 
order to travel safely and independently; 
(5) other people, including pedestrians who are 
not blind, bicyclists, runners, and small children, 
benefit from multi-sensory information available 
from vehicle traffic, including the sound of vehicle 
engines; 
(6) when operating on their electric engines, hy-
brid vehicles cannot be heard by blind people and 
others, rendering such vehicles extremely dangerous 
when driving on the street, emerging from drive-
ways, moving through parking lots, and in other sit-
uations where pedestrians and vehicles come into 
proximity with each other; 
(7) failure to take immediate action assuring 
that blind pedestrians can hear hybrid and other si-
lent vehicles in all phases of their operation will in-
evitably lead to pedestrian injuries and fatalities; 
and 
(8) such accidents are preventable through vehi-
cle designs which take into account the multi-sen-
sory nature of traffic detection and avoidance, and 
require that vehicles emit a minimum level of sound 
designed to alert all pedestrians, especially blind pe-
destrians, to the presence of such vehicles. 
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SEC. 4. STUDY OF METHOD TO PROTECT BLIND AND 
OTHER PEDESTRIANS. 
(a) REQUIRED STUDY.—Not later than 90 days fol-
lowing enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall conduct 
a study to— 
(1) determine the most practical means of as-
suring that blind and other pedestrians receive sub-
stantially similar information to information such 
pedestrians receive from sound emitted by vehicles 
that use internal combustion engines; 
(2) determine the minimum level of sound emit-
ted from a motor vehicle that is necessary to provide 
blind pedestrians with the information needed to 
make safe travel judgments; and 
(3) consider whether the minimum level of 
sound requirement or another method that conveys 
information essential for pedestrian safety provides 
the most reliable information to support safe travel 
of blind and other pedestrians, including— 
(A) which method provides blind and other 
pedestrians the greatest amount of information 
regarding location, motion, speed, and direction 
of travel of a motor vehicle; 
(B) the cost and feasibility of each method, 
including the cost and feasibility of equipping 
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each individual pedestrian with any technology 
necessary to receive information; and 
(C) which method assures the least reli-
ance by blind and other pedestrians upon tech-
nology they must possess when traveling and 
thereby provides the greatest amount of inde-
pendence and opportunity for spontaneous trav-
el for these pedestrians. 
(b) REQUIRED CONSULTATION.—When conducting 
the study, the Secretary shall— 
(1) review all available research regarding the 
effect of traffic sounds on pedestrian safety, and 
commission such research as may be necessary; 
(2) consult consumer groups representing indi-
viduals who are blind, other pedestrians, cyclists, 
and advocates for children; and 
(3) consult with automobile manufacturers and 
professional organizations representing them. 
(c) REPORT.—The Secretary shall complete the study 
within 2 years of its commencement and shall transmit 
a report of the findings to Congress. 
SEC. 5. MINIMUM SOUND REQUIREMENT FOR MOTOR VEHI-
CLES. 
Not later than 90 days after conclusion of the study 
required under section 4, the Secretary shall promulgate 
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a motor vehicle safety standard under section 30111 of 
title 49, United States Code, to establish a method for 
alerting blind and other pedestrians of the presence and 
operation of nearby motor vehicles to enable such pedes-
trians to travel safely and independently in urban, rural, 
and residential environments. Such standard shall provide 
that every motor vehicle be equipped with a method— 
(1) to provide blind and other pedestrians with 
a non-visual alert regarding the location, motion, 
speed, and direction of travel of a motor vehicle that 
provides substantially the same protection of such 
pedestrians as that provided by a motor vehicle with 
an internal combustion engine; and 
(2) that will permit a blind or other pedestrian 
to determine the location, motion, speed, and direc-
tion of travel of a motor vehicle with substantially 
the same degree of certainty as such pedestrians are 
able to determine the location, motion, speed, and 
direction of travel of a motor vehicle with an inter-
nal combustion engine. 
SEC. 6. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 
There is authorized to be appropriated to the Sec-
retary of Transportation such sums as may be necessary 
to carry out this Act. 
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SEC. 7. EFFECTIVE DATE. 
The standard promulgated under section 5 shall 
apply to all new motor vehicles manufactured or sold in 
the United States beginning on that date that is 2 years 
after the issuance of such standard. 
Æ 
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