Traffic Safety

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Freeway

More States Cracking Down on Slow Drivers in the Passing Lane

Some people just can't help but help themselves to the fast lane.

March 17, 2017 - PBS

Caffeine

Drive Safely: Traffic Safety in Short Supply the Monday After Daylight-Saving Time

Another reason to hate the Monday after daylight-saving time goes into effect: a spike in the number of car crashes and traffic fatalities.

March 13, 2017 - Vox

Seattle Hoping to Extend a Successful Traffic Safety Project

After repainting the lanes on Rainier Avenue in Seattle, the street works better for everyone. If it's that easy, why isn't the model implemented more widely?

February 27, 2017 - Seattle Bike Blog

Speed Limit

Scottish Town Tackles Speeders with Blow Dryers

Mimicking traffic cops, local townsfolk have resorted to speed checking passing cars with blow dryers.

February 27, 2017 - BBC

New York City Pedestrians

Walking While Black: The Racial Disparity in Pedestrian Fatalities

Pedestrians of color are more likely to be killed in traffic crashes.

February 19, 2017 - NPR

Ambulance

Report: U.S. Traffic Fatalities Rise, Again

Initial data from the National Safety Council (NSC) suggest that more than 40,000 Americans died on the country's roads in 2016 for the first time in a decade.

February 15, 2017 - The Hill

Autonomous Vehicle

A New Policy Agenda for Autonomous Vehicles: It's Time to Lead Innovation

A call for planners, policy makers, and the car industry to assertively lead the policy development in anticipation of the coming wave of autonomous vehicle technology.

February 9, 2017 - William Riggs

Telegraph Avenue

Oakland's Telegraph Avenue: A Resounding Example of Street Redesign Success

Oakland's Telegraph Avenue underwent a dramatic reconfiguration in April 2016. Since then traffic collisions have declined and walking and biking is way up.

February 3, 2017 - Streetsblog California

Case Study of an Unsafe Street

Street Road, a thoroughfare cutting through the Philadelphia suburb of Bensalem, is a public safety disaster. PennDOT is investing in safety along the road, but locals say much more needs to be done.

January 30, 2017 - The Philadelphia Inquirer

Slow

Want Safer Streets? Then Slow Down

Making the case for reduced speed limits is a matter of life and death.

January 25, 2017 - Walk Arlington

No Walking

Florida Home to 8 of the 10 Deadliest Cities for Pedestrians

Smart Growth America has released its annual Dangerous by Design report, showing that many older, car-oriented cities are the country's most dangerous.

January 12, 2017 - Curbed

Traffic Light

New Ohio Law Allows Drivers to Run Red Lights

The new law couldn't reasonably be described as an "Idaho Stop" for cars, but it's still worth questioning the wisdom of opening a traffic safety grey area.

January 10, 2017 - NBC 24

Ghost Bike

New York Court Ruling: Cities Are Liable for Unsafe Streets

Traffic safety and Vision Zero advocates scored a major victory recently at the New York Court of Appeals.

January 6, 2017 - StreetsBlog NYC

Speed Limit

Austin Still Needs Permission From Texas to Lower its Speed Limits

A decision by the city of Austin to support lower speed limits on some city streets will remain a symbolic gesture until the state allows local governments to establish their own speed limits.

December 25, 2016 - Austin American Statesman

Cicylists

A Christmas Gift From Cambridge: A 'Watch for Bikes' Sticker

Drivers get a sticker for their rear view mirrors, and bikers get the gift of knowing that people behind the wheel share the responsibility for road safety.

December 25, 2016 - The Boston Globe

Expect Passenger Vehicles to Talk to Each Other in the Near Future

The U.S. Department of Transportation wants light-duty vehicles to communicate with each other via advanced technology, known as connected vehicle technology, to prevent crashes. The vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) rule would be phased in over five years.

December 18, 2016 - U.S. Department Of Transportation

Pedestrian Crosswalk

Thinking Beyond the (Autonomous) Vehicle: The Promise of Saved Lives

While car companies and federal regulators concentrate on the mechanisms of automated vehicles, they're still overlooking the ability for the car to connect with the outside world. The benefit of such a focus could come in lives saved.

December 13, 2016 - William Riggs

Traffic Lights

Crunching the Safety Data Reveals the Need to Improve Traffic Lights

After completing an eight-year study of traffic collisions, the Seattle Department of Transportation realized that one way to immediately improve traffic safety would be to improve signalization an key intersections.

November 15, 2016 - The Urbanist

Seattle Speed Limits

Lower Speed Limits Are the Law in Seattle

The city of Seattle moved quickly in enacting a speed limit change on streets around downtown. File this under real change to achieve the goals of Vision Zero.

November 11, 2016 - The Urbanist

Pedestrians

Pedestrian Shaming Is the Wrong Way to Vision Zero

It seems like pedestrian safety campaigns that focus on the errors and guilt of pedestrians miss the point. Shaming pedestrians will not keep them safe, but safer streets will.

November 3, 2016 - Curbed

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