Senator JV Ejercito has filed the Child Safety in Motor Vehicles Act of 2017 (SB No. 1447), a road safety measure that proposes the use of a child restraint system designed to protect infants and children from the drastic effects of collision or sudden stop of vehicles.
Ejercito said that while the country has implemented the mandatory use of seat belts to reduce death among drivers and passengers, the said law only protects adults and is not purposely adapted for infants and children.
“The lack of a road safety law that targets children and infants is what I would want to address. This is why I am seeking to pass the use of a Child Restraint System in private vehicles. When correctly installed and used depending on the child’s size, height and weight, child restraints are proven to reduce fatal injuries among infants by approximately 70%,” the legislator said.
The lawmaker also said that with more families preferring to use their own cars to get to their destinations, the passage of such a law requiring child restraint systems and restricting children from sitting in the front seat potentially has the effect of protecting millions of children being transported daily.