Happy returns! The life-saving three-point standard seatbelt, the use of which is mandatory now for front seat occupants in almost all countries across the globe, is 50 years old.
The seatbelt, which has become the cornerstone of a passive safety arsenal which keeps expanding year after year, was created by Swedish automaker Volvo in 1959 this summer.
It delivered the first car equipped with three-point seatbelt (a PV544 sedan) to a dealer in Kristianstad in that year.
In fact, the three-point seatbelt was invented by a Volvo engineer Nils Bohlin, who had previously developed pilot ejector seats for the aviation division of fellow Swedish manufacturer Saab.
And more than one million lives have now been saved by the single most important piece of automotive safety equipment -- according to figures out this week from Volvo.
In fact, the seatbelt has become the cornerstone of a passive safety arsenal that keeps expanding and innovating year after year. In most cases, this equipment also includes various airbags and seatbelt pretensioners, among others.
Peter Rask, managing director of Volvo Car UK, was quoted by leading British newspaper The Daily Telegraph as saying, "For the majority of motorists, clicking the seatbelt into place is as much as part of the ritual to beginning a car journey as starting the engine."
"That makes it easy to forget its life-saving potential. However other safety systems, such as airbags, are designed to work in conjunction with seatbelts, so it remains the most important safety device in any modern car."
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