Why measuring traffic deaths alone doesn’t paint a full picture.
In a piece in Next STL, Christian Frommelt argues that planners and transportation officials shouldn’t rely exclusively on crash statistics to understand road safety conditions in their cities. “We need metrics that keep us accountable and crash data alone is inadequate in implementing serious, sweeping change.”
For Frommelt, “Measuring modal share—the proportion of people walking/rolling, biking, taking public transit, and driving—will help determine whether car-dominant planning continues to supplant overall health and safety.” Moreover, Census data only shows modal share for commutes to work, obscuring the many other types of trips that people take to grocery stores, schools, healthcare facilities, entertainment venues, parks, and more.
In St. Louis, where Frommelt lives, a new Complete Streets bill could help the city gather more information about those metrics and assess how infrastructure investments are paying off for pedestrians, cyclists, and other road users. Measuring mode share more accurately can also unlock federal funding opportunities.
FULL STORY: Why Crash Statistics are Inadequate for Planning Safer Streets
How “Proven Safety Countermeasures” Save Lives
A bill named in honor of a U.S. diplomat killed while on her bicycle would let state DOTs access full federal funding for road safety projects.
Pedestrian Deaths Tick Down — But Rose 58 Percent in the Last Decade
Road fatalities fell by a meager 4 percent in the first half of 2023.
How Cities are Spending Safe Streets Funds
New federal grant programs are injecting millions of dollars into road safety projects in an effort to stem the alarming growth of traffic deaths on U.S. roads.
What ‘The Brutalist’ Teaches Us About Modern Cities
How architecture and urban landscapes reflect the trauma and dysfunction of the post-war experience.
‘Complete Streets’ Webpage Deleted in Federal Purge
Basic resources and information on building bike lanes and sidewalks, formerly housed on the government’s Complete Streets website, are now gone.
The VW Bus is Back — Now as an Electric Minivan
Volkswagen’s ID. Buzz reimagines its iconic Bus as a fully electric minivan, blending retro design with modern technology, a 231-mile range, and practical versatility to offer a stylish yet functional EV for the future.
Healing Through Parks: Altadena’s Path to Recovery After the Eaton Fire
In the wake of the Eaton Fire, Altadena is uniting to restore Loma Alta Park, creating a renewed space for recreation, community gathering, and resilience.
San Diego to Rescind Multi-Unit ADU Rule
The city wants to close a loophole that allowed developers to build apartment buildings on single-family lots as ADUs.
Electric Vehicles for All? Study Finds Disparities in Access and Incentives
A new UCLA study finds that while California has made progress in electric vehicle adoption, disadvantaged communities remain underserved in EV incentives, ownership, and charging access, requiring targeted policy changes to advance equity.
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City of Albany
UCLA Lewis Center for Regional Policy Studies
Mpact (formerly Rail~Volution)
Chaddick Institute at DePaul University
City of Piedmont, CA
Great Falls Development Authority, Inc.
HUDs Office of Policy Development and Research