[Federal Register Volume 77, Number 177 (Wednesday, September 12, 2012)]
[Notices]
[Pages 56265-56266]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2012-22477]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA)

[Docket No. NHTSA-2012-0046]


Proposed Information Collection Submitted to the Office of 
Management and Budget (OMB); Request for Comments

ACTION: Notice and request for comment.

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SUMMARY: In compliance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 
U.S.C. 3501 et seq.), this notice announces that the Information 
Collection Request (ICR) abstracted below is being submitted to the 
Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review. The ICR describes the 
nature of the information collection and its expected burden. A Federal 
Register notice with a 60-day comment period soliciting comments on the 
following information collection was published on April 30, 2012 (77 FR 
25533).

DATES: Send comments on or before October 12, 2012.

ADDRESSES: Send comments to the Office of Information and Regulatory 
Affairs, Office of Management and Budget, 725 17th Street NW., 
Washington, DC 20503, Attention: NHTSA Desk Officer.
    Comments are invited on the following:
    i. Whether the proposed collection of information is necessary for 
the proper performance of the functions of the Department, including 
whether the information will have practical utility;
    ii. The accuracy of the Department's estimate of the burden of the 
proposed information collection;
    iii. Ways to enhance the quality, utility and clarity of the 
information to be collected; and
    iv. Ways to minimize the burden of the collection of information on 
respondents, including the use of automated collection techniques or 
other forms of information technology.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Gayle Dalrymple (NVS-123), U.S. 
Department of Transportation, National Highway Traffic Safety 
Administration, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE, Washington, DC 20590. 
Telephone (202) 366-5559. Email address: [email protected].
    For access to the docket to read background documents, go to http://www.regulations.gov or the street address listed above. Follow the 
online instructions for accessing the dockets.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
    Title: Recruitment of human subjects for observational experiments 
regarding keyless ignition controls, gear selection controls and 
audible warnings.
    OMB Control Number: Not assigned.
    Type of Request: New Information Collection.
    Abstract: Pursuant to 49 U.S.C. Section 30111(a), the National 
Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) (by delegation from the 
Secretary of Transportation) is directed to prescribe Federal motor 
vehicle safety standards (FMVSSs). Human factors observational 
experiments are proposed to support the current agency regulatory 
efforts that contemplate revising FMVSS No. 114 (Docket No. NHTSA-2011-
0174 RIN 2127-AK88).
    The first experiment will examine factors contributing to driver 
errors in the use of keyless ignition and gear selection controls using 
a driving simulator (simulator experiment), and the second experiment 
will evaluate the lack of effectiveness in current audible warnings 
designed to prevent rollaways related to leaving propulsion systems 
operative when the driver leaves the vehicle (rollaway warning 
experiment). The simulator experiment will be conducted in a laboratory 
setting and participants will be recruited through email. The rollaway 
warning experiment will be conducted in a public parking lot using 
face-to-face recruitment of participants.
    Before these experiments are conducted, information about the 
participants will be collected in order to balance the participants 
between younger and older age groups, genders, and previous driving 
experience with keyless ignition. The Massachusetts Institute of 
Technology Age Lab (Age Lab), under contract with the Volpe National 
Transportation Systems Center (Volpe Center), which is an element of 
the U.S. Department of Transportation (U.S. DOT), Research and 
Innovative Technology Administration (RITA), would collect the 
participant information and conduct this research under an Inter-Agency 
Agreement (IAA) between Volpe Center and NHTSA.
    Affected Public: Participants for the simulator experiment will be 
selected from a list of individuals in the Boston area who have 
indicated to the Age Lab that they would like to participate in these 
types of experiments. Participants for the rollaway warning experiment 
will be drawn from passers-by.
    All participants, regardless of which experiment they participate 
in, will be asked the same recruiting questions.
    Number of Respondents: 375 respondents, including 135 for the 
simulator experiment and 240 for the rollaway experiment.
    Number of Responses: One response per respondent for a total of 375 
responses.
    Total Annual Burden Hours: 18.75 hours. This estimate is based on 
three minutes per respondent to consider and respond to the 9 to 11 
recruitment questions (375 participants x 0.05 hours (i.e., 3 
minutes)).
    Frequency of Collection: One time.
    On April 30, 2012, NHTSA published a notice announcing the proposed 
collection of information and providing a 60-day comment period (77 FR 
25533). The agency received one comment from

[[Page 56266]]

the Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers (Alliance). The Alliance 
offered detailed comments on the collection of information and the 
associated experiments. An extensive discussion of the Alliance 
comments and the changes NHTSA has made to the information collection 
and ICR package as a result can be found in the supporting statement 
that will be placed in the docket for this notice.

Christopher J. Bonanti,
Associate Administrator for Rulemaking.
[FR Doc. 2012-22477 Filed 9-11-12; 8:45 am]
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