Luján, Cohen Reintroduce Bicameral Legislation to Improve Roadway Safety and Uplift Victim Voices at DOT

Washington, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Ben Ray Luján (D-N.M.), a member of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation, reintroduced the DOT Victim and Survivor Advocate Act to create a new role designated as the “National Roadway Safety Advocate” at the Department of Transportation (DOT) who will be responsible for working directly with roadway safety crash victims, survivors, and their families. Specifically, this new role will be responsible for building relationships with victims and survivors, providing education on DOT activities, and providing the victim perspective to the Secretary of Transportation and other DOT officials throughout the process of Department decision-making. U.S. Representative Steve Cohen (D-Tenn.) introduced companion legislation in the U.S. House of Representatives.

After suffering from a traffic crash, victim-advocates often don’t know where to go to make their voice heard and prevent crashes like theirs from happening to others. In addition, latest projections from the National Highway and Traffic Administration (NHTSA) estimate that 40,990 people died in motor vehicle traffic crashes in 2023 and millions more each year are involved in non-fatal crashes. Many of these crashes are preventable with the right policies in place to save lives.

“In New Mexico and across the country, far too many families know the pain of losing a loved one to a traffic crash. More must be done to address traffic safety issues, and that includes having an advocate for victims at the Department of Transportation,” said Senator Luján. “I’m proud to partner Representative Cohen to reintroduce the DOT Victim and Survivor Advocate Act to make this position a reality and ensure victims have a permanent seat at the table. As a victim and survivor of a drunk driving crash myself, I understand the necessity and importance of improving roadway safety and providing victims of roadway safety crashes with the support they deserve. I look forward to working with my colleagues to get this bill signed into law.”

“Traffic accident victims and their families deserve an advocate in the Department of Transportation to listen to their ideas for improving roadway safety, especially after the experience of suffering from a traffic accident. The DOT Victim and Survivor Advocate Act will help ensure that victim-advocates have a point of contact to work with at DOT and give them a permanent and respected voice in DOT decision-making.  I’m pleased to partner with Senator Luján on this important legislation,” said Congressman Steve Cohen (TN-9).

This legislation is supported by a number of New Mexican advocates, including Eric Hein, IST Board Member; Barbara Toth, Vulnerable Road Users NM; and Linda Unruh, Bobby’s Law, NM. National supporters of this legislation include Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD), Advocates for Highway and Auto Safety, National Safety Council, Truck Safety Coalition, League of American Bicyclists, Institute for Safer Trucking, Families for Safe Streets, AnnaLeah & Mary For Truck Safety, Stop Underrides – In Loving Memory of Roya, StopDistractions.org, The Kiefer Foundation, Safe Kids Worldwide. Quotes from supporters are available here.

Senator Luján is a longtime advocate of comprehensive safety measures to save lives and keep our roadways safe. In 2021, Luján championed the HALT/RIDE Act, which was included in the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and implements drunk and impaired driving measures to prevent drunk driving and help save thousands of lives each year. In March 2024, Luján called on the U.S. Department of Transportation to swiftly move forward with its rulemaking process to implement the HALT/RIDE Act, and to do so in a way that protects’ drivers privacy. Since the passage of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, Luján has supported a number of efforts encouraging the Department of Transportation to make positive progress to make our roadways safer, including putting an end to underride crashes and distracted driving, and completing vital rulemakings.

Full text of the legislation is available here.

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