Editorial Roundup: Indiana

The (Fort Wayne) Journal Gazette. Feb. 1, 2022.

Editorial: Driver Education: New federal vision for traffic safety redirects focus

The U.S. Department of Transportation has set a new goal: zero traffic deaths.

Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg announced Thursday the new National Roadway Safety Strategy. It's a set of actions and recommendations that could change the way roads are built, how motor vehicles are designed and how traffic is monitored.

Deaths on American roads had been falling since the 1970s, but that trend reversed during the COVID-19 pandemic. People drove less in 2020, but deaths per mile soared 23%, and 38,680 died. It was the highest total of traffic deaths since 2007. In Indiana, crash fatalities jumped 10%, from 803 in 2019 to 888 in 2020.

The National Roadway Safety Strategy proposes spending about $14 billion from the $1.2 trillion Bipartisan Infrastructure Law passed in 2021 on road safety, including programs aimed at reducing pedestrian and cyclist deaths. It suggests the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration mandate systems on vehicles that automatically brake for pedestrians, as well as technology to prevent people from driving drunk.

The strategy also puts a new focus on speeding, which killed almost 10,500 Americans in 2020. Instead of setting the speed limit according to how motorists 'œnaturally'ť drive on a road, the U.S. Department of Transportation will help local and state engineers consider road design, layout and people other than drivers.

For years, safety advocates have accused state and local transportation departments of prioritizing highways, vehicles and road efficiency over motorists and their passengers. A change of focus could force some local officials to lower speed limits on some roads.

The biggest change the National Roadway Safety Strategy makes, though, is putting more of the burden of road safety on roadway and vehicle systems. Previously, all of the safety burden was on drivers, pedestrians and cyclists.

'œAmericans deserve to travel safely in their communities. Humans make mistakes, and as good stewards of the transportation system, we should have in place the safeguards to prevent those mistakes from being fatal,'ť said Buttigieg, the former mayor of South Bend.

Though most motorists and transportation officials would agree a renewed national effort on traffic safety would be of benefit, the National Roadway Safety Strategy will take years to implement and could be undermined by politics. State and local transportation departments are charged with caring for their own highways and roads, and they will have to implement the new traffic safety strategy.

They might establish a pilot program automating work zone speed enforcement, as Rep. Jim Pressel, R-Rolling Prairie, proposed in the Indiana General Assembly with House Bill 1035. They might support a bill that allows the use of traffic cameras in school zones, as set out in House Bill 1150.

Or they might seek to repeal the law requiring motorists to signal a turn 200 feet before its execution, as Sen. Aaron Freeman, R-Indianapolis, proposed in Senate Bill 124.

In any case, the U.S. Department of Transportation 'œis not going to have to change everyone's mind,'ť said Robert Wunderlich, director of the Center for Transportation Safety at the Texas A&M Transportation Institute. 'œThere are minds already working in this direction,'ť he told Wired magazine.

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Anderson Herald Bulletin. Jan. 26, 2022.

Editorial: Legislators in hurry to bar transgender athletes

The quickest and fairest response to Indiana House Bill 1041, which would bar transgender women - those who are biologically male but do not identify as such - from participating in girls' sports is simple.

Wait until more research tells us how transitioning affects a teenage athlete's body.

Though the issue of transitioning has been a public discussion since at least the 1960s, medical research is in its infancy. Studies show that reducing testosterone - as would occur in therapy for a male transitioning to a female - reduces hemoglobin, which carries oxygen-rich red blood cells through the body. With less hemoglobin, athletes are slower.

Research is ongoing.

Yet, led by State Rep. Michelle Davis, R-Whiteland, HB 1041 passed 8-4 out of the House Education Committee on Monday. Davis, who was named in 2012 to the Indiana Basketball Hall of Fame's Silver Anniversary Team, said her legislation is intended to 'œmaintain fairness and equality in female athletics.'ť

She cited no medical studies, noting only that, during an unspecified year, 275 high school boys ran faster than the lifetime best of world champion sprinter Allyson Felix.

The evidence needs to be stronger than acknowledging that many boys run faster than girls.

During the hearing, the bill received favor from an Idaho state representative whose similar legislation is facing a court challenge. Also, support came from a spokesperson with USA Powerlifting, which is under a one-year suspension from the International Powerlifting Federation for noncompliance with anti-doping mandates.

Charles Powell, an associate professor of urology at the Indiana University School of Medicine, cited an analysis of 24 research articles saying, 'œBased on the available literature, the values for strength and lean body mass and muscle area in trans-women did decrease but they remained above that of cisgender women even after 36 months of androgen-suppressing therapy.'ť (Anti-androgen treatment suppresses masculine features.)

Powell's testimony was critical though showing again that more reviews are necessary - even if to break down the analysis he offered.

The American Civil Liberties Union of Indiana guaranteed it would file a lawsuit against Davis' bill, so such legislation must be based on solid medical and legal footing.

Yes, the bill does aim to guarantee that biologically-born girls and women receive equal opportunities in sports. It also reeks of oppression to many in the LGBTQ community.

Currently, there is no rampant threat that transgender women will take away spots on girls' interscholastic teams in Indiana. So there's time to wait.

All young Hoosiers should be coached along the lines of fair play, not only in sports but in life. Such a building block requires integrity, tolerance and respect by those controlling the rules. And all that takes time.

The Indiana General Assembly might be teaching a valuable lesson in fair play by waiting for more research before legislating transgender involvement in sports.