[Federal Register Volume 83, Number 97 (Friday, May 18, 2018)]
[Notices]
[Pages 23336-23337]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2018-10633]


-----------------------------------------------------------------------

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

National Highway Traffic Safety Administration

[U.S. DOT Docket No. NHTSA-2018-0057]


Reports, Forms, and Record Keeping Requirements

AGENCY: National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), DOT.

ACTION: Request for public comment on proposed collection of 
information.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: Before a Federal agency can collect certain information from 
the public, it must receive approval from the Office of Management and 
Budget (OMB). Under procedures established by the Paperwork Reduction 
Act of 1995, before seeking OMB approval, Federal agencies must solicit 
public comment on proposed collections of information, including 
extensions and reinstatements of previously approved collections. This 
document describes the collection of information for which NHTSA 
intends to seek OMB approval.

DATES: Comments must be received on or before July 17, 2018.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments identified by DOT Docket Number 
NHTSA-2018-0057 using any of the following methods:
    Electronic submissions: Go to http://www.regulations.gov. Follow 
the online instructions for submitting comments.
    Mail: Docket Management Facility, M-30, U.S. Department of 
Transportation, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE, West Building Ground Floor, 
Room W12-140, Washington, DC 20590.
    Hand Delivery: West Building Ground Floor, Room W12-140, 1200 New 
Jersey Avenue SE, Washington, DC, between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday 
through Friday, except Federal holidays.
    Fax: 1-202-493-2251.
    Instructions: Each submission must include the agency name and the 
docket number for this Notice. Note that all comments received will be 
posted without change to http://www.regulations.gov, including any 
personal information provided.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dr. Kathy Sifrit, Contracting 
Officer's Representative, Office of Behavioral Safety Research (NPD-
320), National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, 1200 New Jersey 
Avenue SE, Washington, DC 20590. Dr. Sifrit's phone number is 202-366-
0868, and her email address is [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Under the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, 
before an agency submits a proposed collection of information to OMB 
for approval, it must publish a document in the Federal Register 
providing a 60-day comment period and otherwise consult with members of 
the public and affected agencies concerning each proposed collection of 
information. The OMB has promulgated regulations describing what must 
be included in such a document. Under OMB's regulations (at 5 CFR 
1320.8(d)), an agency must ask for public comment on the following:
    (i) Whether the proposed collection of information is necessary for 
the proper performance of the functions of the agency, including 
whether the information will have practical utility;
    (ii) The accuracy of the agency's estimate of the burden of the 
proposed collection of information, including the validity of the 
methodology and assumptions used;
    (iii) How to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the 
information to be collected; and
    (iv) How to minimize the burden of the collection of information on 
those who are to respond, including the use of appropriate automated, 
electronic, mechanical, or other technological collection techniques or 
other forms of information technology, e.g., permitting electronic 
submission of responses.
    In compliance with these requirements, NHTSA asks public comment on 
the following proposed collection of information:
    Title: Hazard Perception and Distracted Driving Training 
Intervention for Teens.
    Type of Request: New information collection.
    OMB Clearance Number: None.
    Requested Expiration Date of Approval: Three years from date of 
approval.
    Summary of the Collection of Information: The National Highway 
Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) proposes to collect information 
from licensed teen drivers for a one-time voluntary study to evaluate 
Risk Awareness and Perception Training (RAPT), a hazard perception and 
distracted driving training intervention for teens to improve driving 
safety. NHTSA proposes to collect information from newly-licensed teen 
drivers to determine (1) their eligibility to participate in a study to 
evaluate RAPT hazard perception training; (2) their hazard perception 
performance before and after they complete RAPT or placebo training, 
and again six months after training; and (3) their driving exposure via 
driving logs to account for potential differences across participants. 
In addition, participants will agree to allow researchers to access 
their crash and citation records for the first six months of driving to 
support analyses of the effects of RAPT training on crash and citation 
rates.
    These data will be analyzed to determine (1) whether, during the 
first six months of driving, new drivers who complete RAPT training 
have fewer crashes or traffic violations on their driving records than 
comparison group members who receive placebo training, (2) when they do 
crash, is there a difference in severity and at-fault between drivers 
who took RAPT training versus those who received placebo training, (3) 
is there a difference in driving exposure between those who

[[Page 23337]]

did and did not crash, and (4) is there an interaction between sex and 
training group as measured by crashes or crash type.
    NHTSA will provide recruiting letters to an estimated 15,000 newly 
licensed drivers ages 16 through 19. Participation will be voluntary 
and solicited through the distribution of recruiting letters at 
Department of Motor Vehicle locations (DMVs) when new drivers obtain 
their license. The letter will contain the information a teen and their 
guardian(s) need to make an informed decision about participating in 
this study. Consent will be obtained through an informed consent 
agreement approved by an Institutional Review Board (IRB).
    Consented study participants will be randomly assigned within age 
(16, 17, 18 or 19 years) and sex categories to either participation in 
the RAPT or the placebo condition. Participants in the RAPT condition 
will complete the training protocol, which will include questions about 
their driving exposure and crash/offence history in addition to hazard 
recognition training. Those in the placebo condition will view a 
vehicle maintenance video and respond to the same driving exposure and 
crash/offence history questions. The RAPT training protocol is a 
computerized training tool. Data regarding hazard perception skills 
before and after the training will be captured as part of the 
computerized program. Participants will also be invited to complete a 
six month follow up test to see whether they retained the RAPT 
training. The initial letter invitation will include a two-dollar 
incentive. Participants who complete the first test will receive five 
dollars, and those who complete the six month follow up will receive an 
additional ten dollars. A subsample of participants will also be asked 
to complete a trip log to record driving exposure, for which they will 
receive another ten dollars.
    Background: The mission of the National Highway Traffic Safety 
Administration (NHTSA) is to save lives, prevent injuries and reduce 
economic costs due to motor vehicle crashes. In support of this 
mission, NHTSA's Office of Behavioral Safety Research studies behaviors 
and attitudes in highway safety, focusing on drivers, passengers, 
pedestrians, and motorcyclists, and it uses the results to develop and 
refine countermeasures to deter unsafe behaviors and promote safe 
alternatives. The safety of teen drivers is of particular concern. In 
2016 there were 1,908 young drivers 15 to 20 years old who died in 
motor vehicle crashes. Nine percent of all drivers involved in fatal 
crashes in 2016 were 15 to 20 years old, but these drivers only 
accounted for 5.4 percent of the total number of licensed drivers. In 
addition, motor vehicle traffic crashes were the leading cause of death 
for youth (16 to 20) in 2015.
    Description of the Need for the Information and Proposed Use of the 
Information: Exposure-based analyses of crash risk have consistently 
shown that teens have an elevated crash risk. Further, crash risk 
studies have identified that the lack of skills among teen drivers, 
notably a limited ability to identify unexpected hazards on the road, 
is one reason teen driver crash rates are so high. Previous evaluations 
of RAPT have shown promise in terms of a training effect among teens. A 
2017 NHTSA study showed RAPT training using software similar to that 
proposed for the current study improved hazard detection in on-road 
driving (DOT HS 812 379). A 2016 NHTSA evaluation of the effects of 
RAPT on teen drivers' crashes in California, however, produced mixed 
results (DOT HS 812 235). Crash analyses did not show an overall main 
effect of the program but there was a significant effect for males. 
Trained males had a 24% lower crash rate relative to the male 
comparison group. There was no significant difference in females' crash 
rates. While the results from the California study were encouraging, 
promotion of this intervention requires additional evidence of 
effectiveness in reducing crash risk.
    Data Collection Plan: Respondents will be drivers aged 16 to 19 who 
received their provisional or unrestricted licenses (first licenses) 
within the previous two weeks. Participants will be recruited within 
two weeks of obtaining this license. Exclusion criteria are: Driver 
received a provisional or first license more than two weeks ago; driver 
is newly licensed but 20 years old or older; driver's parents do not 
consent to inclusion of child in the study; driver is not able to 
communicate in English; driver is not available for six-month follow-up 
retest; driver is not planning on driving at least one trip per week; 
driver has already received other hazard perception training. A roughly 
equal distribution of males and females will be recruited within each 
age cohort. Overall, 15,000 teens will be invited to participate in the 
first jurisdiction; we expect 7,500 to agree to participate. Of those, 
half will be randomly assigned to the treatment condition (RAPT 
training) and the other half to the placebo condition (vehicle 
maintenance video). To bolster the evaluation research design, we will 
invite another 5,000 teens from a second jurisdiction to participate in 
the placebo condition, and expect half of this group to agree. This 
``external'' evaluation component will help rule out alternative 
explanations in outcomes that are not associated with the RAPT 
training.
    The initial invitation letter will be presented to 15,000 teens in 
the first jurisdiction and 5,000 teens in the second. Teens and their 
guardian(s) are expected to take an average of 2 minutes each to review 
the letter, including study inclusion criteria, for a total of 2,000 
hours (up to three respondents reviewing each letter). We expect to 
recruit 10,000 participants (half of the 20,000 invitees). Teens who 
agree to participate in the study are expected to spend 45 minutes 
reading and signing the informed consent and completing the data 
collection and training protocol for a total of 7,500 hours. A 
subsample of 2,000 (of the 10,000) participants will also be asked to 
complete a one-week trip log. Completing the trip log will take an 
estimated 5 minutes per day or 35 minutes per week for a total of 1,167 
hours. Finally, 7,500 (of the 10,000) participants will be asked to 
complete the six-month follow-up test lasting 15 minutes for a total of 
1,875 hours.
    Estimate of the Total Annual Reporting and Record Keeping Burden 
Resulting from the Collection of Information: The total estimated 
burden for recruitment (2,000 hours), the initial training and data 
collection (7,500 hours), the trip log (1,167 hours) and the follow-up 
data collection (1,875) is 12,542 hours.

    Authority: 44 U.S.C. Section 3506(c)(2)(A).

    Issued in Washington, DC on May 15, 2018.
Jeff Michael,
Associate Administrator, Research and Program Development.
[FR Doc. 2018-10633 Filed 5-17-18; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 4910-59-P