Celebrating 70 years of research and education supporting the mission of reducing roadway crashes, injuries and deaths, the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety has unveiled a new website – AAAFoundation.org – focused on its four core traffic safety research priorities: emerging technologies, vulnerable road users, driver behavior and performance, and roadway systems and drivers.
“For seven decades, the AAA Foundation has been committed to addressing critical safety issues,” said Foundation Executive Director David Yang. “As vehicle technologies and the ways humans interact with them evolve, so will the foundation’s research. With an eye toward the future, our focus is on improving road and vehicle designs to ensure all drivers get home safely at the end of the day.”
Highlighting the four core traffic safety research priorities, AAAFoundation.org is a sleek, professional resource featuring the Foundation’s research and resources. Visitors can sign up to receive Foundation updates and learn more about research focus areas and the request for proposal process.
Since its founding, the AAA Foundation has funded several hundred projects to discover the causes of traffic crashes, prevent them and minimize injuries when they do occur. Early on, studies focused on young drivers, education programs and driver training techniques. Over the years, research expanded to include teen and older drivers, senior mobility, driver distraction and evolving road safety issues such as impaired driving.
Respected for both in-house research expertise and for its work with leading experts in North America, the Foundation’s work provides meaningful scientific insights into today’s traffic safety challenges. Examples can be found at AAAFoundation.org and include:
- Annual Traffic Safety Culture Index, first published in 2008, to benchmark and track key indicators of the public’s beliefs and attitudes toward traffic safety
- Center for Driving Safety & Technology’s In-Vehicle Infotainment Systems, which provides critical insight as industry and government grapple with the issues surrounding evolving vehicle technologies
- Longitudinal Research on Aging Drivers (LongROAD) project, a groundbreaking study tracking nearly 3,000 senior drivers as they age that will support in-depth studies of senior driving and mobility to better understand risks and develop effective countermeasures
- Impaired Driving and Cannabis, research findings that legal limits for marijuana and driving are not supported by science.
“The foundation has been true to its mission to prevent traffic deaths and injuries through research and to educate the public ultimately to identify safe driving behaviors,” said AAA President and CEO Marshall L. Doney. “AAA is proud to support the Foundation’s work, and through our national and club professionals, to put the Foundation’s important research findings into action across the nation.”
AAA has applied research from the AAA Foundation to help strengthen laws, build public awareness of safety concerns and trends, inform automakers on safety design issues, and advise transportation agencies and highway departments on vital roadway improvements.
