Lyndon B. Johnson photo

Statement by the President Following Senate Approval of the Traffic Safety Bill.

June 24, 1966

I APPLAUD the action of the Senate today in its overwhelming approval of the traffic safety bill which I urged the Congress to enact.

I particularly want to applaud the efforts of Senators Magnuson and Ribicoff.

This is landmark legislation. It will move us out of the Stone Age of ignorance and inaction.

For the first time in our history, we can mount a truly comprehensive attack on the rising toll of death and destruction on the Nation's highways that last year alone claimed 50,000 American lives.

We can no longer tolerate such anarchy on wheels. This measure with its stringent and mandatory Federal auto safety standards is going to reverse the trend.

I urge the House to speed passage of this vital legislation that will benefit every man, woman, and child in our land.

Note: The National Traffic and Motor Vehicle Safety Act and the Highway Safety Act were approved by the President on September 9, 1966 (see Item 449).

Lyndon B. Johnson, Statement by the President Following Senate Approval of the Traffic Safety Bill. Online by Gerhard Peters and John T. Woolley, The American Presidency Project https://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/node/238651

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