Will a BabyBjorn or other soft infant carrier protect a child in a taxi?
Simply put, NO!
We Car Seat Ladies are big proponents of baby-wearing. Not only is it comfortable for the baby, it's also convenient for mom or dad--especially in the city where you may be in and out of small stores or taking the subway or bus.
Unfortunately it is NOT safe to use a soft baby carrier in a taxi. While your friend might use it for her baby and your pediatrician or baby care instructor might even have said it's OK, the Baby Bjorn--or any other type of soft infant carrier – Ergo, Snugli, slings, wraps, etc--will not protect a baby in a crash. Watch the video below to see what will happen to your child in a crash.
Crash Test Results
The Australian Transport Safety Bureau created a video of a crash test where a dummy passenger wore a dummy infant in a BabyBjorn. The BabyBjorn fails to hold the infant and he goes flying into the front of the test platform. We created a short video including the crash test explaining what happens technically and why it happens.
Similar Studies
Researchers Kathleen Weber and John Melvin of the Highway Safety Research Institute at the University of Michigan Medical School tested this same scenario using a 30 mph, front, dynamic crash test of the type required by the current U.S. federal safety standard for child car seats. Unfortunately we have no video of this crash test. In the test, an adult wore the baby in a soft, cloth front carrier like the Baby Bjorn and used a lap/shoulder belt. The researchers found that this infant was at a very high risk. The tested carrier shredded completely, ejecting the infant dummy into the dashboard. If the carrier had not shredded, they found that the infant would likely still not have survived. As the adult's head traveled forward in the whiplash motion, the adult's chin would have slammed down into the infant's head right where the soft spot is.
If you find yourself in a taxi with just your infant and a Baby Bjorn (hopefully you never will), there is NO way to protect your baby! However, you can still protect yourself by wearing your seatbelt. Putting the seatbelt over you and the baby will only make matters worse. It will not help the baby and will endanger you in the process.
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