The absence of crashes does not equal the presence of safety

Police-reported crash data tells only part of the safety story, and the risks that people walking and biking face on our roadways are potentially much higher than the numbers show. To address safety needs, performance measures and management systems cannot simply respond to crash data alone. The information and recommendations provided in SGA’s Dangerous by … Continued

Complete Streets Transportation

Designing vehicles for pedestrians

Designing for walkability is not just about roads. The design of vehicles—everything from their size and shape to their software—has a profound effect on the safety of pedestrians, cyclists, and other road users. Through our research and testing programs, IIHS is identifying vehicle improvements that can work in conjunction with infrastructure and enforcement changes to produce a safer transportation system for all.

Transportation

Safer Speeds are the Secret Sauce to the Safe System Approach

After a decade of increased pedestrian and bicyclist deaths and a historic spike during the COVID-19 pandemic, the United States Department of Transportation (USDOT) published its first-ever National Roadway Safety Strategy in 2022 – setting a goal of zero traffic deaths and adopting a Safe System Approach to achieve it. In explaining the Safe System … Continued

Complete Streets

Pedestrian fatalities at historic high

Yesterday, the U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) released final data for 2022 traffic crashes revealing 7,522 people were struck and killed while walking that year. This crisis isn’t new—pedestrian fatalities are on a consistent upward trajectory and have increased by 68 percent since 2011. We need strong leadership and swift, wholesale action to make our … Continued

Complete Streets

What is the future of walkability in St. Louis?

As part of a technical assistance project to help local decision makers understand the needs for better mobility and craft stronger policies, I recently had the opportunity to visit and explore one of the great cities of the Midwest–St. Louis, Missouri. Like most American cities, St. Louis clearly demonstrates the impacts of design that prioritizes high-speed driving and punishes all other forms of mobility.

Complete Streets Transportation

Press statement: Newly updated MUTCD doesn’t go far enough to protect pedestrians

Washington, D.C. (Dec. 20) — Yesterday, the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) released the 11th Edition of the Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices (MUTCD), a document “that governs how traffic control devices communicate the design intent to the road user to safely and efficiently navigate the roadway system.” Smart Growth America and Transportation for America … Continued

Complete Streets Transportation