By Jayne O’Donnell and James R. Healey,USA TODAY
Light,small cars are more dangerous
The Obama administration’s sweeping fuel-economy and emissions initiative announced Tuesday reopens a fierce debate over tradeoffs between fuel economy and auto safety.
The government says no tradeoff exists,because nothing in the new rules would force automakers to sell more small cars,which are more dangerous in crashes than larger ones. But some safety experts think otherwise.
“The deadlines are so tight that downsizing will be a tempting compliance strategy”for automakers,says John Graham,the former rulemaking chief in the Office of Management and Budget.