Study of Child Restraint Systems

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

14 CFR Part 93

[Docket No. 27941]

Study of Child Restraint Systems

AGENCY: Federal Aviation Administration [FAA], DOT.

ACTION: Notice of Study and Request for Comments.

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SUMMARY: On August 23, 1994, Public Law (Pub. L.) 103-305 was enacted

and requires that the FAA conduct a study on the availability,

effectiveness, cost, and usefulness of restraint systems that may offer

protection to children, who presently do not use child restraint

systems and who are presently carried on the laps of adults, aboard air

carrier aircraft. The report to Congress is due February 23, 1995. This

document requests comments from the public on the issues surrounding

child restraint systems.

DATES: Comments must be received on or before November 11, 1994.

ADDRESSES: Send or deliver other comments in triplicate to: Federal

Aviation Administration, Office of Chief Counsel, Attention: Rules

Docket (AGC-200), Docket No. 27941, 800 Independence Avenue, SW.,

Washington, DC 20591. Comments must be marked Docket No. 27941. They

will be on display in Room 915G weekdays between 8:30 a.m. and 5:00

p.m., except on Federal holidays.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Mr. Gary Becker, APO-310, Federal Aviation Administration, 800

Independence Avenue, SW., Washington, DC 20591, telephone No. 202-267-

7766.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

United States air carriers have a superb safety record that has

continued to improve over time and now ranks among the best in the

world. The risk of injury or death when traveling on an airline is low.

Air carrier accidents are infrequent. Even identifying the causes of

these accidents (e.g., severe inflight turbulence) requires thorough

and wide-ranging research.

Children under the age of two (infants) are permitted to travel

aboard airlines on the laps of their parents, guardians, or attendants.

Air carriers decide whether to charge for the transportation of infants

who are held on adult laps. Infants traveling in this manner, however,

are not secured by any safety/restraint systems. In the rare event of a

crash or rapid aircraft movements such as those caused by severe in-

flight turbulence, forces may be too great for the accompanying adult,

guardian, or attendant to protect the infant from injury. In these

circumstances, infants are at higher risk of death or injury than all

other travelers who must fasten safety belts.

Infants may also be placed in acceptable child/infant safety seats.

However, most air carriers require that a ticket be purchased for those

children under two in order to reserve a seat to which the safety seat

can be attached. The added ticket cost, and the generally perceived low

rate of accidents and injuries, results in many parents, guardians or

attendants opting to hold infants in their laps. The alternative of

incurring an added cost to reserve a seat for use with an infant safety

seat may divert some air travelers to other less costly modes of

transportation. Infants and adults may be at a higher risk of death or

injury when traveling in alternative modes than if they flew.

Congress, in Public Law 103-305, amended the Airport and Airway

Improvement Act of 1982. This amendment directs the FAA to conduct a

study of child restraint systems on air carrier aircraft. The study is

due to Congress on February 23, 1995. The purpose of this study is to

determine the availability, effectiveness, cost, and usefulness of

restraint systems that may offer protection to a child, carried in the

lap of an adult aboard an air carrier aircraft or provide for the

attachment of a child restraint device to the aircraft. Congress has

directed the FAA to study the following issues:

1. The direct cost to families of requiring air carriers to provide

restraint systems and requiring infants to use them, including whether

airlines will charge a fare for use of seats containing restraining

systems.

2. The impact on air carrier aircraft passenger volume by requiring

use of infant restraint systems, including whether families will choose

to travel to destinations by other means, including automobiles.

3. The impact on fatalities and fatality rates of infants and

adults using airplanes, automobiles, and other modes of transportation.

4. The efficacy of infant restraints currently marketed as able to

be used for air carrier aircraft.

There are at least four additional issues that are related to the

Congressional issues described above:

1. What cost might airlines incur if the use of child safety seats

was required by regulation? There are several subordinate issues

related to cost. For example:

(a) Would air carriers provide child safety seats?

(b) What would it cost air carriers to purchase and maintain child

safety seats?

(c) How often would child safety seats have to be replaced?

(d) How many times annually would child safety seats be used on air

carrier aircraft?

(e) How many child safety seats would be purchased during a year by

air carriers?

2. For a family traveling with infants, what is the price

elasticity of demand for air travel?

(a) What fares doe air carriers now charge for infants currently

seated in child safety seats?

(b) If parents had to purchase a ticket for their child under the

age of two and the price of the seats on their flight of choice was

such that their only alternatives would be to (1) drive or (2) fly

paying discount fares during off-peak hours (or a non-direct flight),

which alternative would they choose?

(c) Is there a difference in the elasticity of short versus long

trips--(less than 300 miles and 300 miles or greater)?

(d) Is 300 miles the appropriate demarcation for a short versus a

long trip for a family traveling with infants? What, if any, is a

relevant demarcation?

(e) What is the cross-price elasticity of demand for air and

automobile travel for families traveling with infants?

3. What are the profiles of families with infants who drive? What

are the profiles of families with infants who fly?

For example:

(a) How many infants are enplaned annually aboard domestic air

carriers?

(b) How many infants would be represented in an average size family

that flies?

(c) What is the average number of individuals in a family that

flies?

(d) How many families fly annually?

(e) Of those families with infants who fly, what percent of

families currently use child safety seats?

4. What are the infant and adult mortality rates for air travel,

automobile travel, and other modes of transportation? There are several

subordinate issues related to mortality rates. For example:

(a) What are the appropriate units of measure to use to compare

infant fatalities/injuries from automobile travel to infant fatalities/

injuries from air travel?

(b) What is the infant automobile passenger fatality, serious

injury, and minor injury incidence rate for families with infants

traveling by automobile? How does this incidence rate compare with

those of families traveling by air?

(c) What is the non-infant automobile passenger fatality, serious

injury, and minor injury incidence rate for families with infants

traveling by automobile? How does this incidence rate compare with

those of families traveling by air?

(d) How does the automobile accident rate for parents and guardians

of infants compare with the automobile accident rate for the general

population?

(e) When is the passenger seat and safety belt that is available to

an adult passenger (without the child safety seat) safe enough for a

child?

(f) When should seats not manufactured to federal motor vehicle

safety standards be used (if at all)?

With regard to the issue of the efficacy of infant restraints, the

FAA has completed a study entitled ``The Performance of Child Restraint

Devices in Transport Airplane Passenger Seats.'' A notice of

availability was published in the Federal Register on September 27,

1994 (59 FR 49276). The FAA is continuing to study child restraint

systems and to work with the National Highway Traffic Safety

Administration to develop revised standards for child safety seat

testing and labeling.

The FAA will be seeking data from some individually selected air

carriers, air taxis, and commercial operators or their representatives

concerning anticipated pricing policies if child safety seats are

mandated for infants. This data is needed to respond to the

Congressional request for a report and would constitute competitive

commercial information. To avoid any improper exchange of competitive

price or marketing information the FAA will maintain the

confidentiality of such information. Raw data of this nature will not

be disclosed; rather, any presentation of such data will be aggregated

to avoid any competitive concerns.

Comments Invited

Parties interested in the congressionally mandated study of child

safety seats are invited to submit such written data, views, or

arguments as they may desire. Comments that provide a factual basis

which support the views and suggestions presented are particularly

helpful in analyzing the child safety seat issues. Comments are

specifically invited on the overall regulatory, economic, competitive,

and small business aspects of child safety seat use and of potential

alternatives. Written submissions should identify the docket number and

be submitted in triplicate to the Federal Aviation Administration,

Office of Chief Counsel, Attention: Rules Docket (AGC-200), 800

Independence Avenue, SW., Washington, DC 20591. Comments should not be

sent or directed to any of the contractors that have been engaged by

the FAA to provide information for the study.

All comments received on or before the closing date for comments

will be fully considered. To the extent possible, all comments received

after the closing date will be considered also. All comments submitted,

will be available for examination in the Rules Docket both before and

after the closing date for comments.

Issued in Washington, DC, on October 20, 1994.

Dale E. McDaniel,

Deputy Assistant Administrator for Policy, Planning, and International

Aviation.

[FR Doc. 94-26441 Filed 10-25-94; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4910-13-M