Mark Rosekind Nominated to Lead NHTSA
This story appears in the Dec. 1 print edition of Transport Topics.
Mark Rosekind was nominated Nov. 19 by the White House to head the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
Rosekind has been a member of the National Transportation Safety Board since 2010. Before that, he was president and chief scientist at Alertness Solutions, a scientific consulting firm he founded that specializes in fatigue management. The firm reviews concerns related to commercial drivers and other motorists to propose ways to address driver fatigue.
Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx said Rosekind is a “leader ready-made for this critical responsibility.”
If confirmed, Rosekind would replace David Friedman in his role as acting administrator.
American Trucking Associations President Bill Graves called Rosekind a “highly qualified” professional.
“We’ve worked with Dr. Rosekind in the past and, in our experience, we’ve found him to be thoughtful, smart, well-reasoned and willing to follow the data. We look forward to working with him on both safety and fuel-economy issues important to the trucking industry,” Graves said.
Sen. John Thune (R-S.D.), who is expected to be the chairman of the Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee in the next Congress, said he looked forward to hearing Rosekind’s “plans to address the rising number of motor vehicle safety recalls.”
“After months of calling on the president to nominate an administrator to oversee motor vehicle safety laws, I’m pleased to hear that he has finally nominated someone. The administration has fallen short on its responsibility to the American people by leaving NHTSA without a Senate-confirmed leader for nearly a year,” Thune said.
The Senate’s limited schedule during the post-election lame-duck session likely will push consideration of Rosekind’s nomination to the 114th Congress next year.
The agency proposes guidance pertaining to stability control systems on truck tractors and motorcoaches to address rollover and loss-of-control crashes.
It also conducts long-term research aimed at improving the overall safety performance of heavy trucks by focusing on braking issues, tires and other systems.
