The centerpiece of the University of Michigan's Transportation Research Institute (UMTRI) Sled Lab is "the impact sled," as it is called in the business. It's the business of conducting sled impact tests, perhaps better known as crash tests, on all types of wheelchairs and wheelchair seating systems as well as wheelchair tiedowns and…

This is the first of a series of six articles on the topic of transportation safety for wheelchair-seated travelers and will highlight some of the basic issues and principles that have been considered in the development of voluntary standards for wheelchair tiedown and occupant restraints systems (WTORS) as well as for wheelchairs that are used as…