Public/Private Partnerships
Engines for Innovation in Transportation
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II. Examples of Public/Private Partnerships in Transportation
A. Crash Injury Research and Engineering Network (CIREN): Basic Medical Research to Benefit Transportation Safety
1. Partnership Description
CIREN is a partnership of the federal government, auto manufacturers, and trauma centers in major research and teaching hospitals. The primary objective of the Network is to research the causation and nature of injuries that actually occurred in motor vehicle crashes, and use this information to improve restraint and occupant protection designs for enhanced safety. These results are more accurate than results from tests on crash test dummies. In the words of former National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) Administrator Dr. Ricardo Martinez, "In the real world, it is people - not crash dummies - who we are working to save. We need to return to our roots. We need to learn more about real injuries to real people." An additional objective is to research the effect of driver physical limitations, such as poor eyesight and reflexes, on crash causation. The partnership was created in 1996.
a. Partners
The partners are:
Federal:
- NHTSA, U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT)
Industry:
- General Motors (until September 1999); and
- DaimlerChrysler
Academic:
- Children's National Medical Center, George Washington University, Washington, DC;
- National Study Center for Trauma and EMS/R. Adams Cowley Shock Trauma Center, University of Maryland, Baltimore, MD;
- New Jersey Medical School, Newark, NJ, affiliated with University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey;
- William Lehman Injury Research Center, University of Miami, Miami, FL;
- University of Michigan Health System Program for Injury Research and Education, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI;
- Harborview Injury Prevention and Research Center, University of Washington, Seattle, WA;
- San Diego County Trauma System, University of California, San Diego, CA; and
- Mercedes-Benz CIREN Center, University of Alabama, Birmingham, AL.
b. Partnership Structure and Roles
Each of the eight hospital trauma centers acts as a center for research for CIREN; thus, the academic partners provide the facilities, staff, and expertise for the basic research component. NHTSA has initiated the partnership, and provides funding for four of the eight CIREN centers. Until September 1999, General Motors funded three centers through a settlement agreement arising out of a DOT investigation into the safety of certain GM pickup trucks. DaimlerChrysler funds the newest CIREN center at the University of Alabama in Birmingham. (See Figure 2) A computer network has been set up with General Motors funding for the eight CIREN laboratories to exchange information. In addition, a CIREN conference has been held annually for the last three years, to enable researchers at the centers to exchange information. A CIREN Association has been formed, consisting of the principal investigators from the eight centers. Their present purpose is to explore other funding sources for the research, but the existence of this committee leaves open the possibility that it could function as an executive board in the future, for more institutionalized coordination.
Figure 2: CIREN Centers
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