The Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) Office 

of Safety Research and Development (R&D) helps 

reduce highway crashes and related fatalities and 

injuries by developing and implementing safety 

innovations through a program of nationally 

coordinated research and technology development. 

Selections from this broad research portfolio are 

highlighted below. 

SAFETY DATA AND ANALYSIS

The Safety Data and Analysis team’s purpose is to 

support positive safety resource allocation decisions 

through consistent high-quality data collection and 

analysis to transform data into actionable information 

through analytical tool development and to formally 

evaluate the effectiveness of potential safety 

improvements.

Safety Training and Analysis Center (STAC)/ 

Strategic Highway Research Program 2 (SHRP2)

The mission of the STAC is to work with highway 

safety data stakeholders and others in the 

transportation community to improve roadway 

safety performance by providing training, technical 

assistance, and analytical tools to support safety 

research. The STAC will enable the U.S. Department 

of Transportation to make the best use of high-value 

safety datasets, such as those developed under the 

SHRP2, which includes Naturalistic Driving Study 

(NDS) data and the Roadway Information Database 

(RID). Key services of STAC include the following:

• Training: Design, develop, and conduct training 

to support research and analysis focused on addressing the safety of the roadway environment, 

in particular the impact of roadway features on 

driving behavior, through analysis of SHRP2, 

NDS, RID, and other datasets.

• Technical Assistance: Provide technical 

assistance to highway safety data stakeholders. 

Subject matter experts at the Turner-Fairbank 

Highway Research Center will provide guidance 

on how to approach and analyze a particular 

problem using NDS, RID, and other data.

• Tools Development: Develop analytical tools 

to assist researchers and others in using safety 

datasets. Tools, such as reduced datasets, as well 

as automated feature extraction algorithms and 

automated identity masking algorithms, will enable 

users to more quickly address many research 

questions without using sensitive information 

and will support the consistent use of the data.

Highway Safety Information System

The Highway Safety Information System (HSIS) 

includes a safety database in which crash, roadway 

inventory, and traffic volume data are combined 

to help users study current highway safety issues, 

to direct research efforts, and to make the best 

decisions about safety improvements. Presently, 

seven States and one urban center actively provide 

data to the system. HSIS also provides analytical 

support for highway safety research.

Interactive Highway Safety Design Model

The Interactive Highway Safety Design Model 

(IHSDM) is a suite of software tools that support 

project-level geometric design decisions by 

providing quantitative information on the expected 

safety and operational performance of roadways. 

The IHSDM currently includes six evaluation 

modules (Crash Prediction, Design Consistency, 

Intersection Review, Policy Review, Traffic Analysis, 

and Driver/Vehicle). The crash prediction module of 

IHSDM is a software implementation of Part C 

of the American Association of State Highway 

and Transportation Officials Highway Safety 

Manual (HSM), which includes crash prediction 

methodologies for rural two-lane and multilane 

highways, urban/suburban arterials, and freeways/

interchanges.(1)

Evaluation of Low-Cost Safety Improvements 

Pooled Fund Study (ELCSI-PFS) and Development 

of Crash Modification Factors (CMFs)

FHWA has partnered with 38 States to conduct the 

ELCSI-PFS. This study, which has been active for 

more than 10 years, evaluates unproven priority 

safety improvements. The Development of Crash 

Modification Factors (DCMF) study is a major longterm study that also evaluates unproven low- to 

high-cost priority safety countermeasures to develop 

high-quality CMFs that meet the criteria for inclusion 

in the HSM.(1)

SAFETY 

R&D Research and Development

Turner-Fairbank Highway Research Center
Motorcycles

Motorcycle rider fatalities comprise about 14 percent of 

motor vehicle fatalities. FHWA is currently concluding 

a motorcycle crash causation study. FHWA and other 

researchers will use these data to study potential 

causes of motorcycle crashes and to develop possible 

countermeasures to prevent or lessen the severity of 

these crashes.

Geographic Information System (GIS) Safety 

Analysis Tools

State and local transportation departments are moving 

much of their crash, roadway, and traffic data to GIS 

platforms. Currently, FHWA is conducting research to 

identify the resources needed to advance the use and 

capabilities of GIS as part of a safety program for State 

and local governments.

HUMAN FACTORS

Human factors studies help researchers better understand transportation user needs and limitations. By 

taking into account driver capabilities when designing 

roadways, human errors will be minimized and public safety will be enhanced by decreasing crashes and 

fatalities. Human factors research supports many of the 

research projects and programs undertaken within the 

other R&D focus areas.

Pedestrian Safety

Pedestrians account for nearly 13 percent of traffic 

fatalities nationally. Accordingly, FHWA‘s Pedestrian 

Safety Program develops pedestrian safety-related 

products, research documents, and technologies to 

help improve conditions for pedestrians. From safer 

crosswalks and sidewalks to growing educational and 

safety initiatives, the program strives to cultivate safer 

roadways for some of the most vulnerable users of 

U.S. roadways.

ROADWAY

The Roadway Safety Research Program emphasizes 

the following two fundamental objectives:

• Keeping vehicles on the roadway.

• Minimizing the consequences of a vehicle leaving 

the roadway. 

Roadway safety studies are conducted in the following 

five focus areas: 

• Roadway departure.

• Speed management.

• Intersection safety and design.

• Visibility.

• Intelligent transportation systems (ITS).

Roadway Departure

Roadway departure research considers ways to 

provide better information to drivers about their 

vehicle’s position on the road surface and to indicate 

to drivers when their vehicles are straying toward a 

potentially dangerous situation. Measures such as 

rumble strips and rumble stripes provide drivers with 

a clear warning that their vehicles are approaching 

potentially unsafe conditions. 

Speed Management

Speed management focuses on how to set and 

enforce speed limits. It is a complex issue involving 

both engineering and behavioral factors. Ultimately, 

motorists decide what speed to travel in a given 

circumstance. As a result, a significant aspect of speed 

management research is to investigate how motorists 

arrive at that decision.

Intersection Safety and Design

More than 50 percent of the combined fatal and 

injury crashes occur at or near intersections. FHWA’s 

intersection safety and design research facilitates the 

implementation of short-term safety improvements 

and defines and evaluates long-term higher payoff 

strategies to improve intersection safety. 

ITS

ITS safety applications research involves developing 

the technologies and protocols necessary for 

vehicles and infrastructure to securely communicate 

information to each other to prevent crashes and 

roadway departures. ITS safety applications have the 

potential to improve safety across many of the R&D 

focus areas, such as at intersections, in dangerous 

curves, and in reduced speed zones and work zones. 

REFERENCE

1. American Association of State Highway and 

Transportation Officials. (2010). Highway Safety 

Manual, First Edition. American Association 

of State Highway and Transportation Officials, 

Washington, DC.

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