[il-talk] Fwd: [Nfbnet-members-list] President Signs Pedestrian Safety Enhancement Act

[AZNOR99 at aol.com]

It's official.  Congratulations, everyone!
 
 
  
____________________________________
 From: JFreeh at nfb.org
To: nfbnet-members-list at nfbnet.org
Sent: 1/5/2011  5:33:22 P.M. Eastern Standard Time
Subj: [Nfbnet-members-list] President  Signs Pedestrian Safety Enhancement 
Act


FOR IMMEDIATE  RELEASE



CONTACT:

Chris  Danielsen

Director of Public Relations

National Federation of  the Blind

(410) 659-9314, extension 2330

(410) 262-1281  (Cell)

cdanielsen at nfb.org




President Signs Pedestrian Safety Enhancement  Act

Washington, D.C. (January 5, 2011): The  National Federation of the Blind 
today commended President Barrack Obama for  signing into law the Pedestrian 
Safety Enhancement Act (S. 841), which will  protect the blind and other 
pedestrians from injury as a result of silent  vehicle technology. 

“The National Federation of the Blind is pleased  that this critical 
legislation has been signed into law, preserving the right  to safe and 
independent travel for the blind,” said Dr. Marc Maurer, President  of the National 
Federation of the Blind.  “The blind, like all  pedestrians, must be able to 
travel to work, to school, to church, and to  other places in our 
communities, and we must be able to hear vehicles in order  to do so.  This law, which 
is the result of collaboration among blind  Americans, automobile 
manufacturers, and legislators, will benefit all  pedestrians for generations to come 
as new vehicle technologies become more  prevalent.  We look forward to 
working with the Department of  Transportation throughout the regulatory process.
”

Because blind  pedestrians cannot locate and evaluate traffic using their 
vision, they must  listen to traffic to discern its speed, direction, and 
other attributes in  order to travel safely and independently.  Other people, 
including  pedestrians who are not blind, bicyclists, runners, and small 
children, also  benefit from hearing the sound of vehicle engines.  New vehicles 
that  employ hybrid or electric engine technology can be silent, rendering 
them  extremely dangerous in situations where vehicles and pedestrians come 
into  proximity with each other.

###






About  the National Federation of the Blind


With more than 50,000  members, the National Federation of the Blind is the 
largest and most  influential membership organization of blind people in 
the United  States.  The NFB improves blind people’s lives through advocacy,  
education, research, technology, and programs encouraging independence and  
self-confidence.  It is the leading force in the blindness field today  and 
the voice of the nation's blind.  In January 2004 the NFB opened the  
National Federation of the Blind Jernigan Institute, the first research and  
training center in the United States for the blind led by the blind.   Please 
visit our Web site: _www.nfb.org_ (http://www.nfb.org/) .






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