An Opportunity Awaits You...

Traffic safety is a success story. In 2009, traffic fatalities reached their 

lowest level in 55 years due to the energy, enthusiasm, and hard work of 

thousands of safety stakeholders. Help continue the momentum by signing 

up for one of five new web-based courses related to the Highway Safety 

Improvement Program (HSIP). These courses include HSIP Overview, HSIP 

Project Identification, HSIP Project Evaluation, Strategic Highway Safety Plan 

(SHSP) Development, and SHSP Implementation. The purpose of these courses 

is to help State and local agencies advance safety through awareness of 

cutting-edge HSIP best practices and successful SHSP implementation efforts. 

Additional information related to each course is provided below.

HSIP Overview 

Almost anyone can benefit from this HSIP overview course. It is an introduction to 

the infrastructure side of safety for individuals who are new to the safety discipline; 

an agency’s leadership can learn more about the importance of safety; and HSIP 

managers can find out about the relationship of the various HSIP programs. The course 

also benefits data managers who hear about safety data sources, data quality, and 

strategies for overcoming data challenges; and State, regional, and local engineers 

can gain knowledge on network screening, countermeasure selection, project 

prioritization, and evaluation.

The course provides the basics on HSIP, including the program structure and legislative 

and regulatory requirements, and ensures participants can use the information 

through a greater understanding of HSIP planning, implementation, and evaluation 

components. It is a solid introduction to one of the primary funding mechanisms for 

infrastructure safety improvements. 

HSIP Project Identification and Evaluation 

The HSIP Project Identification and Project Evaluation are blended courses involving 

on-line sessions and facilitated web conferences. If you are an engineer, planner, SHSP 

emphasis area team member or leader, or a data analyst – these are the courses for 

you. Read more to find out why... 

“Improving safety on our roadways requires agencies to select optimal safety 

solutions. The HSIP Project Identification and Project Evaluation courses allow 

safety stakeholders to gain critical knowledge that ultimately improves safety 

project selection. The ultimate result will mean more people arriving alive to 

their destinations.”

John Miller, Traffic Safety Engineer, Missouri Department of Transportation

Flexible to Meet

User Needs

The courses, available through 

the National Highway Institute 

(NHI), are flexible and designed 

to meet user needs: 

• Conduct an in-State training 

with the State acting as host 

and invite districts, local 

agencies, and/or other 

stakeholders to participate; 

• Hold a mini peer-exchange 

with multi-State participants 

so States can learn from 

one another and ask NHI to 

serve as host; 

• Request individuals to take 

the courses separately or as 

a series; or 

• Tailor the material to focus 

on specific State issues 

or concerns. 

http://safety.dot.gov

Be Part of the Safety Success Story 

Sign-up for Highway Safety Improvement Program Training Courses Today
• Engineers and planners benefit because they conduct technical 

analysis to support HSIP project identification and evaluate the safety impact 

of projects on crash frequency and severity;

• SHSP emphasis area team leaders and members profit because they learn more 

about the development of strategies and action steps that relate back to the 

HSIP; and 

• Data analysts learn more about identifying sites with potential for improvement or 

for systemic improvements, and HSIP project evaluation. 

Both courses introduce data analysis concepts such as regression to the mean, safety 

performance functions, and the Empirical Bayes method. The HSIP Project Identification 

course highlights the strengths and weaknesses of network screening processes 

involving systemic safety improvements and those aimed at specific sites with potential 

for safety improvement, as well as ways to prioritize projects based on the safety and economic effectiveness measures. 

The HSIP Project Evaluation course describes the fundamentals for a safety effectiveness evaluation along with examples of 

evaluation methodologies and provides hands-on opportunities for participants to practice various types of observational 

before-after studies used in safety evaluation. 

SHSP Development and Implementation 

The SHSP Development training is a useful web-based refresher 

course for any State that is updating their SHSP since the 

development and update processes are the same. There are other 

benefits for Metropolitan Planning Organizations (MPO), counties, 

and communities, which are developing local and regional 

safety plans as well as new hires that are joining the workforce. 

These needs are the driving force behind the creation of this basic 

tutorial on the background, history, contents, development, and 

maintenance of the SHSP. 

The SHSP Implementation is a blended course involving on-line and facilitator-led webinar courses. Anyone involved in traffic 

safety, and especially those involved in SHSP management and implementation efforts at the Federal, State, regional, and 

local levels can benefit. This training course provides the strategies and examples of the SHSP implementation processes that 

keep SHSP partners at the table – engaged and energized. The course presents the ideal framework so States can assess, 

compare, and adjust their own efforts to achieve the greatest outcomes. 

How Can I Participate 

To sign up for a course, go to the National Highway Institute at http://www.nhi.fhwa.dot.gov and click on “Search for a Course.” 

You can find the courses along with a schedule of upcoming sessions by using the following course numbers:

HSIP Overview – FHWA-NHI-380110 SHSP Development – FHWA-NHI-380113

HSIP Project Identification – FHWA-NHI-380111 SHSP Implementation – FHWA-NHI-380114

HSIP Project Evaluation – FHWA-NHI-380112 

Be a part of something that is making a positive difference for thousands of people all over the nation. 

You may never meet the person whose life you save or know what injury you prevent, but know 

improving your safety skills and knowledge are a key to Safer Roads for a Safer Future.

“This web-based training course provides a 

significant new resource for the entire highway 

safety community when working to take SHSP 

planning to the next level. This Development 

Course leverages the collective learning and 

experience of the highway safety community 

to the benefit of both experienced and novice 

safety practitioners from a 4E perspective.” 

Lowell Porter, Director of the

 Washington Traffic Safety Commission