Pedestrian Safety

Washington Focuses Road Safety Efforts on Individuals, Neglecting Design
Legislative efforts to reduce traffic deaths could move the needle toward Vision Zero, but state leaders failed to commit infrastructure funds to making structural improvements.

Columbus Could Lower Downtown Speed Limits
The city council will vote on a proposal to lower speed limits to 25 miles per hour to improve safety and make downtown more walkable and welcoming to pedestrians.

Chicago Left Turn Traffic Calming Reduces Crashes
The city installed reflective posts and speed bumps at dangerous intersections to induce drivers to take left turns more slowly and carefully.

Houston Traffic Deaths Dipped in 2022
Fatal crashes killed slightly fewer people in 2022 than in 2021, but deaths are still significantly higher than in 2019.

Cincinnati Gets Serious About Pedestrian Safety
A new in-house team dedicated to pedestrian safety at Cincinnati City Hall and a new complete streets ordinance are some of the changes underway in Cincinnati.

Chicago Transportation Advocates Launch ‘Safe Streets for All’ Coalition
The group brings together advocates for road safety and better transit in the hope of influencing local elections and city policy.

Pedestrian Deaths Spike in King County Cities
Eight cities in Washington’s King County saw sharp increases in traffic fatalities, signaling a need for more robust road safety and traffic calming policies.

Zero to Deadly: How More Powerful Cars Endanger Lives
With cars accelerating more quickly, drivers have less time to react and can pose more danger to pedestrians.

What Is a Road Diet?
A road diet ‘trims down’ multilane roadways by reallocating street space to uses other than car traffic, improving safety for pedestrians, encouraging multimodal travel, and enhancing overall livability.

How High Costs Derailed Richmond’s Speed Limit Change
After voting to lower speed limits citywide, Richmond found itself with a $5.2 million bill for new signage, prompting the city council to pull the ordinance.

Massachusetts Passes New Road Safety Law
The legislation requires cars to keep four feet away from cyclists and other “vulnerable” road users and eases the process for lowering speed limits on state-owned roads.

Tacoma’s Lower Speed Limits Take Effect
The city hopes reducing speed limits will help them achieve their Vision Zero pledge.

Opinion: To Meet Climate Goals, San Diego Must Improve Bike Infrastructure
The city wants to drastically reduce carbon emissions, but bike advocates argue it has not done enough to make biking and walking in the city safer and more convenient.

How Rigorous Driver’s Education Contributes to Safer Roads
The arduous process for getting a driver’s license in Holland is one reason why that country’s roads are consistently safer than their U.S. counterparts.

How Tactical Urbanism Succeeds Where Bureaucracy Fails
Making the case for do-it-yourself infrastructure.

Texas Road Safety Messaging Blames Pedestrians, Ignores Structural Flaws
Critics of the state’s ‘Be Safe. Drive Smart.’ campaign say the messaging puts the onus on pedestrians and cyclists while failing to address the lack of robust pedestrian and bike infrastructure in many of its cities.

Why Are U.S. Roads So Deadly?
Despite an abundance of Vision Zero pledges, U.S. roads remain some of the most dangerous in the developed world.

Colorado Springs Updates Transportation Plan
The city made the first revisions to its transportation plan in twenty years, acknowledging the changing transportation needs of the region’s growing population.

Vision Zero Successes Show a Path Forward
While traffic deaths in the United States keep rising, progress in cities like Hoboken and New York prove that, with the right resources, eliminating traffic deaths is possible.

Ambulances vs. Pedestrians
Are the needs of emergency response vehicles inconsistent with nondrivers’ needs for slower, safer streets? Maybe not.
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