Winter 2021, Volume 15, Issue 1

 Message from the Associate Administrator for Safety, Cheryl Walker

Slowing Down for a Safe New Year

Speeding is a major safety issue on our Nation’s roadways. For the past two decades, speed has 

been a contributing factor in approximately one-third of all motor vehicle fatalities.1 Although traffic 

volume has decreased during 2020, preliminary data show a troubling increase in speeding this year. 

National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) research,2 released this October, suggests 

that driving patterns and behaviors changed significantly during the second quarter of 2020, and that 

drivers who traversed the now less-congested roads tended to engage in more risky behaviors, 

including speeding.

At the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), we provide resources to our Federal, State, local, 

and Tribal safety partners to assist them in deploying engineering-based solutions to help keep road 

speeds safe. We encourage agencies to design roads for the speeds we want to see, and to set 

prudent speed limits on these roads. We also work to amplify the safety messages of NHTSA and 

other partners to help drivers modify their behaviors and drive at safe speeds. 

FHWA’s online speed-setting tool, USLIMITS2, helps practitioners set reasonable, safe, and 

consistent speed limits on their roads. When used in combination with other tools, such as speed 

studies, USLIMITS2 can provide an objective “second opinion” in speed-limit-setting decisions. In addition, this year we released 

a Noteworthy Speed Management Practices guide (see page 21) that provides case studies from eight communities highlighting 

speed management issues, including self-enforcing roadways, high-visibility enforcement, and successful adoption of speed 

safety cameras. We have a wealth of other resources on our speed management website, from basic information to educate the 

public to a detailed, interactive Traffic Calming ePrimer for professionals that has technical information on selecting and applying 

speed management countermeasures.

Please take advantage of our speed management resources to help you set reasonable speed limits and design safer roads. 

And please always be mindful of your speed when you are driving—it is better to be late than to never arrive at all. 

 1 https://www.nhtsa.gov/risky-driving/speeding.

2 https://www.nhtsa.gov/press-releases/2019-fatality-data-traffic-deaths-2020-q2-projections.

Cheryl Walker

FHWA Office of Safety 

Associate Administrator 

for Safety. (Source: FHWA)
SAFETY COMPASS NEWSLETTER · Winter 2021: Volume 15, Issue 1

– 2 –

in this issue...

 What’s New.......................................................................................................................................................................... 3

FHWA Joins NHTSA in Celebrating the First National Pedestrian Safety Month ........................................................................................... 3

Re-Energizing the Highway Safety Improvement Program through Training and Technical Assistance.............................................3

Hitting the (Virtual) Road for STEP Scan Tours............................................................................................................................................................. 5

 Safety-Driven Changes and Improvements................................................................................................................. 6

The HSIP Is Reducing Fatalities in Daviess County...................................................................................................................................................... 6

Efforts to Reduce Commercial Motor Vehicle Involvement in Work Zone Crashes ...................................................................................... 8

The Road to Zero: Shifting from Vision to Action .....................................................................................................................................................10

Practical Safety Solutions for Local and Tribal Roads: A Human Factors Approach ...................................................................................11

 Learning Together.............................................................................................................................................................13

Explaining the Rules of the Roundabout.......................................................................................................................................................................13

Integrating Safety into Project Purpose and Need...................................................................................................................................................14

What Are First Responder “Struck-by Crashes,” and How Are They Being Addressed?............................................................................16

Educating Young Pedestrians: STEP STEM Lessons for K–8 Students...............................................................................................................17

 Data and Analysis ..............................................................................................................................................................18

New MIRE and MIRE FDE Technical Assistance..........................................................................................................................................................18

Crash Data Summary Templates: A Systemic Tool for Everyone.........................................................................................................................18

 New Resource Roundup..................................................................................................................................................21

Speed Management Noteworthy Practices Report ..................................................................................................................................................21

USDOT Pedestrian Safety Action Plan and Summary Report Now Available Online..................................................................................22

HFST Recommendations Report Now Available........................................................................................................................................................22

Update to Pedestrian and Bicyclist Road Safety Audit Guide and Prompt List................................................................................................23

Now Available: Tribal Crash Reporting Toolkit...........................................................................................................................................................24

FHWA Launches Local Road Safety Plan Do-it-Yourself Website.......................................................................................................................24

 Announcements................................................................................................................................................................26

New Roadway Safety Champions—Partners for Zero Deaths Web Page Launched ..................................................................................26

Upcoming Conferences and Events ................................................................................................................................................................................26

Visit the FHWA Office of Safety Virtual Booth in the TRB Exhibit Hall! ............................................................................................................27
SAFETY COMPASS NEWSLETTER · Winter 2021: Volume 15, Issue 1

– 3 –

WHAT’S NEW

FHWA Joins NHTSA in 

Celebrating the First 

National Pedestrian Safety 

Month

By Abdul Zineddin and Rebecca Crowe, 

FHWA Office of Safety

Pedestrian fatalities have been on 

the rise in recent years, both in 

number and in the percentage of 

overall highway fatalities. From 2010

to 2019, pedestrian fatalities in 

crashes increased 44 percent. 

However, the trend is starting to shift 

downward. NHTSA’s Preview of 

Motor Vehicle Traffic Fatalities 

shows a decline in total traffic 

fatalities, including a reduction in 

pedestrian fatalities from 6,374 to 

6,205 from 2018 to 2019.

3 The bar 

graph below shows the number of 

annual pedestrian fatalities between 

2010 and 2019. This is good news, 

and we will be working tirelessly to 

continue this downward trend. 

To increase awareness of pedestrian 

safety, and to inform about initiatives 

and resources available for 

pedestrian safety, NHTSA launched 

the first National Pedestrian Safety 

Month in October. NHTSA, FHWA,

 3 https://crashstats.nhtsa.dot.gov/Api/Public/ ViewPublication/813021.

and our safety partners kicked off 

National Pedestrian Safety Month 

with a webinar on Tuesday, 

September 29. During the webinar, 

NHTSA unveiled a new pedestrian 

data visualization tool designed to 

better communicate the issue of 

pedestrian-related crashes through 

data visualization. 

Cheryl Walker, FHWA’s Associate 

Administrator for the Office of Safety, 

highlighted various pedestrian safety 

programs and products during the 

webinar, including:

• STEP Studio.

• Pedestrian Virtual Booth.

• Crosswalk Visibility 

Enhancements: EDC 

Storyboard—Making It Safe for 

Pedestrians at Night.

• Updated Pedestrian and 

Bicyclist Road Safety Audit 

Guide and Prompt List.

• Speed Management Noteworthy 

Practices.

The webinar included remarks from 

Secretary of Transportation Elaine L. 

Chao, FHWA Administrator Nicole R. 

Nason, NHTSA Deputy 

Administrator James C. Owens, and 

speakers from transportation safety 

organizations. A recording of the 

kickoff webinar is available online at

https://www.nhtsa.gov/events/nation

al-pedestrian-safety-month-kickoff.

In preparation for National 

Pedestrian Safety Month, 

Administrator Nason launched two 

videos. In Walking at Night Does Not 

Have to Be Deadly, she discusses 

pedestrian safety at night, and in 

Take a STEP Forward and Enhance 

Pedestrian Safety, she shares 

information on life-saving 

countermeasures to improve 

pedestrian safety. Both videos are 

included in the pedestrian safety 

playlist available online. 

Finally, National Pedestrian Safety

Month included new pedestrian 

safety publications (see page 22) 

and a targeted social media 

campaign. To search this content, 

check out the campaign hashtag 

#PedestrianSafetyMonth. 

For more information, contact Abdul 

Zineddin at abdul.zineddin@dot.gov. 

Re-Energizing the Highway 

Safety Improvement 

Program through Training 

and Technical Assistance

By Danielle Betkey and Karen Scurry, FHWA 

Office of Safety

The highway safety environment is 

ever changing, and highway safety 

needs can greatly vary among 

States. As States work to reduce 

highway fatalities and serious 

Pedestrian fatalities 2010–2019. (Source: NHTSA) injuries through implementation of 
SAFETY COMPASS NEWSLETTER · Winter 2021: Volume 15, Issue 1

– 4 –

the Highway Safety Improvement 

Program (HSIP), it is important they 

are innovative and take advantage of 

the latest information and noteworthy 

practices to help advance their 

programs. 

Every State has its own unique way 

of administering its HSIP. As such, 

the need for training and resources 

may also vary. For the HSIP, it is 

often more helpful for States to learn 

from each other. In an effort to “reenergize the HSIP,” the Office of 

Safety is providing training and 

technical assistance to help States 

improve and advance their 

programs. We kicked off 2020 with a 

new webinar series that focused on 

HSIP-related topics, such as HSIP 

implementation plans, streamlining 

HSIP project delivery, marketing and 

communicating the Strategic 

Highway Safety Plan (SHSP), and 

evaluating and updating the SHSP. 

The webinar series will continue in 

2021 and will focus on advancing the 

Safe System approach in the HSIP. 

Be sure to stay tuned for more 

details! 

In addition to the webinar series, we 

have revamped our HSIP web page

to include training resources that 

specifically support HSIP-related 

implementation efforts. These efforts 

also include the SHSP, Rail-Highway 

Crossing Program, and Safety 

Performance Management. We have 

compiled a list of current trainings, 

videos, and recorded webinars so 

that everything is available all in one 

place.

For States that need a more 

personalized solution, we offer free, 

customized technical assistance to 

meet State-specific needs. Technical 

assistance can be on-site (when 

available) or virtual through the 

following methods:

• Assistance from an experienced 

peer or technical expert.

• Training workshop led by an 

experienced peer or technical 

expert.

• Facilitated peer exchange.

Examples of the technical assistance 

that the Office of Safety has 

provided include:

• HSIP evaluation tracking 

database for Rhode Island.

• Peer exchange for Texas to learn 

how other States incorporate 

systemic safety projects into their 

HSIPs.

• Travel for Kansas to meet with 

three peer States to learn more 

about their SHSPs.

• HSIP implementation plan 

workshops for several States that 

did not meet (or make significant 

progress toward) their safety 

performance targets.

• SHSP evaluation process model 

workshops for several States that 

had been preparing to update 

their SHSPs.

• Peer exchanges to cover topics 

such as contribution of SHSP 

and HSIP in driving down 

fatalities, local road safety policy, 

HSIP project tracking, 

streamlining HSIP project 

delivery, and safety performance 

management.

The Office of Safety has resources 

to support your technical assistance 

requests, so challenge us and let us 

help you advance your State’s safety 

program today! Agencies can 

request technical assistance through 

the Roadway Safety Professional 

Capacity Building Program by 

submitting an online application and 

Peer Exchange Helps Texas Overcome Staff Development Hurdles 

When the Texas Department of Transportation faced significant staffing changes, it 

looked to FHWA’s peer exchange program to help update HSIP policies and educate 

new employees on current best practices. FHWA coordinated an information-sharing 

session with Texas, North Carolina, and Ohio. Following the peer exchange, Texas 

implemented a systemic safety program modeled by proven management systems that 

had been used by peer departments. The new system has helped prioritize projects and 

evenly distribute funding to match district needs.

“In a peer exchange, States dig in on similar issues they have and work with people they 

trust, which provides true value. The peer exchange helped us kick off a lot of change 

here in Texas.” -Stephen Ratke, safety and traffic operations specialist, FHWA Texas 

Division.

The HSIP is a core Federal-aid program that helps to reduce traffic fatalities and serious 

injuries on all public roads through the implementation of infrastructure-related highway 

safety improvements.
SAFETY COMPASS NEWSLETTER · Winter 2021: Volume 15, Issue 1

– 5 –

selecting one of the following safety 

topics: HSIP, SHSP, RHCP or safety 

performance measures.

For more information, contact 

Danielle Betkey at 

Danielle.Betkey@dot.gov. 

Hitting the (Virtual) Road 

for STEP Scan Tours

By Becky Crowe, FHWA Office of Safety

The year 2020 has taught us to 

adapt and change course when 

needed. When restrictions for nonessential travel were implemented, 

FHWA’s Safe Transportation for 

Every Pedestrian (STEP) program 

put one virtual foot in front of the 

other to bring States together. STEP 

had originally planned to host inperson scan tours (multiday 

knowledge-exchange and sitereview events) between State 

departments of transportation (DOT).

Not wanting to lose momentum, the 

STEP team adapted and moved the 

scan tours online in summer and fall 

2020. The team facilitated 

conversations among States about 

STEP countermeasures and 

strategies for improving pedestrian 

safety.

The Florida DOT (FDOT) was the 

inspiration for a series of virtual 

events. FDOT requested FHWA 

support for a peer exchange on the 

STEP “Spectacular Seven”

pedestrian countermeasures, such 

as the leading pedestrian interval

(LPI), pedestrian refuge island, and 

raised crosswalk. The team hosted a

five-part online series where State 

DOTs asked countermeasurespecific questions directly to other 

DOTs. FDOT hosted the first two 

sessions of the new State-to-State 

question-and-answer series on LPIs, 

raised crosswalks, and pedestrian 

refuge islands. DOT representatives 

from Washington, DC; Washington

State; Maryland; New York; and 

North Carolina offered 

implementation recommendations, 

lessons learned, and design 

specifications. An average of 100 

State DOT and FHWA personnel 

joined each online session.

“The opportunity to engage with 

colleagues throughout the country 

on ways to improve safety was very 

valuable to our team,” shared Mary 

O’Brien, FDOT’s host and State 

bicycle/pedestrian coordinator. “In 

particular, it was helpful to hear how 

LPIs are being used elsewhere.” 

The STEP team held another scan 

tour for the North Carolina, Oregon, 

Louisiana, Massachusetts, Michigan, 

Virginia, and Delaware DOTs to 

discuss major roadways that are 

over-represented in pedestrian 

fatalities and serious injuries. 

Together, these seven State DOTs 

shared their approaches, programs, 

modeling techniques, and 

challenges to pedestrian safety on 

suburban and arterial corridors. The 

group met three times in September 

and October and collaborated on a 

framework to proactively consider 

the needs of all road users in design, 

operations, and access of suburban 

corridors. 

“The suburban roads scan tour was 

a great opportunity for my agency to 

look inward and outward for the most 

effective ways we can eliminate 

serious pedestrian crashes on these 

types of roads and streets,” shared 

Gary Obery, Oregon DOT’s bicycle 

and pedestrian traffic engineer. Eric 

Leaming, Oregon DOT’s State traffic 

investigations engineer, shared, “I’d 

add this was good timing for Oregon 

because we are working on updating 

our crosswalk treatment guidelines 

now.”

The STEP team adapted, once 

again, and brought Hawaii, Ohio, 

Tennessee, Washington, and 

Wisconsin DOTs together in a virtual 

environment to share their 

approaches to identifying high-risk 

areas for pedestrian fatalities, and to 

prioritize pedestrian projects. A key 

outcome from this two-day scan tour

involved documenting noteworthy 

practices for translating data and 

systemic analysis into a program of 

projects and countermeasures. 

The STEP program will continue 

hosting scan tours through spring 

2021. If your agency is interested in

learning more about STEP program

resources, contact Becky Crowe at 

rebecca.crowe@dot.gov. To request 

a STEP workshop or additional 

training, contact Peter Eun at 

peter.eun@dot.gov.
SAFETY COMPASS NEWSLETTER · Winter 2021: Volume 15, Issue 1

– 6 –

SAFETY-DRIVEN CHANGES AND IMPROVEMENTS

The HSIP Is Reducing 

Fatalities in Daviess County

By Martha Horseman, KY LTAP, Joseph 

Martin, KY LTAP, and Rosemarie Anderson, 

FHWA Office of Safety

The HSIP is a core Federal-aid 

program designed to significantly 

reduce traffic fatalities and serious 

injuries on all public roads, including 

non-State-owned roads and roads 

on Tribal land. The HSIP focuses on 

performance and requires a datadriven, strategic approach to 

improving highway safety on all 

public roads.

In April 2019, the Kentucky HSIP 

identified a curve in Daviess County 

that had experienced more wetpavement-related crashes than 

similar curves in the State. The 

curve is on Veach Road, a locally 

owned roadway classified as a 

collector road. This classification 

requires certain data to be collected 

that, in turn, allows the road to be 

included in the HSIP screening 

process. After identifying the curve 

as an area to be improved, HSIP 

staff conducted a field visit to 

determine what safety 

countermeasures would be a good 

application for the curve. 

These proven safety 

countermeasures for reducing 

crashes at curves include a variety 

of strategies that can be 

implemented in combination or 

individually. The strategies fall into 

two categories: enhanced 

delineation and increased pavement 

friction.

Enhanced Delineation 

Enhanced delineation treatments 

can alert drivers in advance of a 

curve, and vary by the severity of the 

curvature and operating speed. 

Costs to implement these strategies 

are low to moderate. Treatments 

include the following: 

• Pavement markings. 

• Post-mounted delineation. 

• Larger signs and signs with 

enhanced retroreflectivity. 

• Dynamic advance curve warning 

signs and sequential curve signs.

Increased Pavement Friction

High-friction surface treatment 

(HFST) is another efficient 

countermeasure. HFST 

compensates for the high-friction 

demand at curves where the 

available pavement friction is 

inadequate to support operating 

speeds due to one or more of the 

following:

• Sharp curves.

• Inadequate cross-slope design.

• Wet conditions.

• Polished roadway surfaces.

• Driving speeds in excess of the 

curve advisory speed.

HFSTs are pavement treatments 

that effectively reduce all crashes—

particularly wet-pavement-related 

crashes with friction demand issues

typically seen on curves. KYTC 

reports a before/after total crash 

reduction of 90 percent for its HFST 

trial projects. HFSTs involve 

applying calcined bauxite, a highquality aggregate, to the pavement 

using a polymer binder to restore 

and/or maintain pavement friction at 

existing or potentially high crash 

areas. The higher pavement friction 

helps motorists maintain better 

control in both dry and wet 

conditions and is most effective 

when used at curves and 

approaching intersections. Based on 

this assessment, HFST was chosen 

as the appropriate proven safety 

countermeasure for the Veach Road 

curve. 

Implementing HFST

Mark Brasher, Daviess County 

engineer, and Nathan Ridgeway 

described their experiences with the 

HFST application and the 

camaraderie between local 

governments and KYTC.

HIGH-FRICTION SURFACE 

TREATMENTS 

52% reduction in wet road crashes 

24% reduction in curve crashes 

Source: CMF Clearinghouse, CMF 

IDs 7900 and 7901

Kentucky Transportation Cabinet 

(KYTC) reports a before/after total 

crash reduction of 90 percent for its 

HFST trial projects.
SAFETY COMPASS NEWSLETTER · Winter 2021: Volume 15, Issue 1

– 7 –

Were you familiar with Veach Road?

“When Nathan Ridgeway called and 

said this road was marked with a 

high crash rate, I was surprised by 

the particular curve he was 

referencing,” said Brasher. KYTC 

had been aware of the two sharp 90-

degree curves, and had previously 

done work to curve #2 before KYTC 

flagged curve #1. The curve not 

identified by the HSIP had a 

guardrail removed, added enhanced 

delineation, and—with permission 

from the landowner—cut back trees 

and adjusted shoulder to create a 

clear zone. The high crash rate 

curve was about 1,584 feet away.

What was the original problem and 

how did HFST solve it?

Curve #1 had been experiencing 

more wet-pavement-related crashes 

than other similar roadways in the 

State. After a separate analysis, 

curve #2 was determined to benefit 

from HFST as well. Combining both 

curves into one project made for a 

more cost-effective project.

Why was HFST the best choice?

Prior to deciding on HFST as the 

solution, KYTC and the HSIP 

conducted a field investigation and 

found that there were several 

driveways/entrances in the area. 

With any other method, you would 

have driveway and realignment 

issues because of the entrances. 

This made HFST a standout 

candidate. KYTC had looked into 

HFST but it was not affordable, 

which is why advanced delineation 

had been previously added. The 

curve is also located in a wooded 

area where pavement often remains 

wet and drivers underestimate the 

curves. Using HFST provided a good 

safety measure to ensure vehicles 

will remain on the roadway.

How is HFST applied?

High-friction calcined bauxite 

aggregate is used in conjunction with 

a cold-installed polymer resin binder. 

HFST is mechanically applied via 

dispensing vehicle. The polymer 

resin binder is evenly spread over 

the road surface at an approximate 

thickness of 50–55 millimeters. 

Immediately following, the highfriction aggregate is uniformly spread 

over the polymer resin binder. Once 

the polymer resin binder has cured, 

which can be just as short as a few 

hours depending on weather 

conditions, the excess aggregate is 

removed with a vacuum sweeper. 

The recovered aggregate is recycled 

and reused.

HFST Benefits and Effectiveness

HFST effectiveness varies by 

location, but overall, agencies have 

found that HFST can improve 

pavement surface friction by up to 

three times the existing condition, 

reduce needed stopping distance by 

25–30 percent, and reduce crashes 

by 45–100 percent. In Kentucky, the 

average total crash reduction is 73 

percent and the average wet-crash 

reduction is 86 percent.

Who did the construction for this 

project?

It was a partnership between KYTC 

and Daviess County. Through 

FHWA, KYTC was able to fund up to 

90 percent and Daviess County was 

responsible for the remaining 10 

percent. Contractors performed the 

work, and KYTC were administrators 

and inspectors during the project.

KYTC discovered curve #1. Daviess County brought curve #2 to KYTC’s attention. 

(Source: University of Kentucky)

Calcined bauxite provides the longlasting high friction of HFSTs. 

(Source: University of Kentucky)
SAFETY COMPASS NEWSLETTER · Winter 2021: Volume 15, Issue 1

– 8 –

What FHWA resources helped in this 

project?

FHWA recommends HFST as a lowcost safety countermeasure because 

it is effective and durable, especially 

as a spot application in critical 

locations. HFST dramatically and 

immediately reduces crashes, 

injuries, and fatalities associated 

with friction demand issues. This 

provided KYTC the reassurance that 

the treatment would provide longterm benefits.

This article was previously published 

in TheLink, Kentucky Technology 

Transfer Newsletter, spring 2020. 

For more information, contact 

Rosemarie Anderson, FHWA Office 

of Safety, at 

rosemarie.anderson@dot.gov or 

Martha Horseman, LTAP director, at 

martha.horseman@uky.edu. 

Efforts to Reduce 

Commercial Motor Vehicle 

Involvement in Work Zone 

Crashes

By Martha Kapitanov, FHWA Office of 

Operations

Each year, commercial motor 

vehicles (CMV) are involved in a 

significant number of fatal work zone 

crashes. CMVs consist of both 

buses and large trucks with a gross 

vehicle weight rating of more than 

10,000 pounds. As the graphs on the 

following page illustrate:

• CMV-involved fatal work zone 

crashes are increasing not only 

year by year, but also as a 

percentage of all fatal work zone 

crashes.

• CMV involvement in non-work 

zone fatal crashes has been 

consistent at about 12–14 

percent of all non-work zone fatal 

crashes over the same period of 

time. 

• CMVs are involved in almost 30 

percent of fatal work zone 

crashes on urban interstates and 

nearly 50 percent of fatal work 

zone crashes on rural interstates. 

• CMV involvement in fatal work 

zone crashes is also higher on 

other principal arterials in rural 

areas than the overall trend.

In recognition of this ongoing overrepresentation in work zone crashes, 

FHWA, in collaboration with Federal 

partners, State DOTs, and other 

stakeholders, has been leading 

efforts to mitigate CMV involvement 

in work zone crashes.

Development and Dissemination 

of Technical Resources and 

Outreach Materials

FHWA has used funding under the 

Work Zone Safety Grant program to 

develop technical resources to help 

State and local transportation 

agencies identify, select, and 

implement strategies to mitigate 

CMV crashes in work zones. These 

include:

• The technical advisory document 

Design and Operation of Work 

Zone Strategies to Improve Large 

Truck Safety, which provides 

general information on various 

available mitigation strategies.

• Guidelines for Work Zone Access 

and Egress document, which

addresses work space access 

considerations—an area where 

CMV involvement in work zone 

crashes is believed to be a 

concern.

• Technical fact sheets Designing 

Work Space Access Points to 

Better Accommodate Large 

Trucks and Use of Smart Work 

Zone Technology to Improve 

Work Space Access Point Safety, 

which provide detailed design 

and implementation information 

on these specific mitigation 

strategies.

FHWA and the Federal Motor Carrier 

Safety Administration (FMCSA) have 

also developed or sponsored 

outreach materials (brochures, social 

media graphics) to remind CMV 

drivers of the unique challenges of 

driving through work zones and 

defensive driving strategies to better 

accommodate those challenges. 

Outreach materials have also been

developed to remind automobile 

drivers to drive defensively near 

CMVs around work zones.

Access to resources that help 

mitigate CMV crashes in work zones 

has been simplified by collating the

resources on the Improving Large 

Truck Safety in Work Zones web 

page within the National Work Zone 

“We were fortunate to have our cabinet HSIP, along with our FHWA Kentucky Division office, 

working with a local government (Daviess County) to install HFST. It’s been less than a year, 

and there have been no crashes since the installation in two areas. We are looking forward to 

many more projects with our cabinet and local governments.”

- Martha Horseman, Local Technical Assistance Program director
SAFETY COMPASS NEWSLETTER · Winter 2021: Volume 15, Issue 1

– 9 –

Safety Information Clearinghouse 

website. To access this page, visit 

www.workzonesafety.org, hover over 

the Hot Topics tile, and click the top 

item.

Targeted Technical Assistance to 

Stakeholders

FHWA has begun engaging with 

stakeholders in several opportunity 

States to assist their efforts to 

identify and implement targeted 

mitigation strategies for reducing 

CMV involvement in work zone 

crashes at the State and local level. 

In 2019, representatives from these 

States, and other stakeholders (e.g., 

Federal administrations, tolling 

agencies, trucking industry entities, 

transportation safety groups, law 

enforcement, and academic 

transportation centers), participated 

in a virtual roundtable and in-person 

workshop to:

• Review the characteristics of 

CMV-involved work zone crashes 

(fatal and serious injury).

• Review previous and ongoing 

efforts to improve the safety of 

CMVs in work zones.

• Discuss what agencies are doing 

to reduce the over-representation 

of CMVs in work zone crashes.

• Share experiences with 

identifying, adopting, and 

evaluating strategies (successes 

and challenges).

• Identify other resources needed 

to help reduce CMV crashes in 

work zones.

Currently, FHWA is leading a 

targeted effort to better understand 

the unique circumstances in each 

opportunity State that lead to CMV 

crashes in work zones. FHWA is 

also providing technical assistance 

and scheduling workshops in each 

opportunity State. In coordination 

with FMCSA and NHTSA, these 

workshops will include session 

topics, training materials, and other 

resources that assist stakeholders 

with identifying, adopting, and 

evaluating strategies to improve 

CMV safety in work zones. The 

culmination of this effort will be 

State-specific action plans and 

recommendations to improve safety 

and reduce CMV incidents in and 

around work zones.

For more information, contact 

Martha Kapitanov at 

Martha.kapitanov@dot.gov. 

CMV-involved fatal work zone crashes and percent of CMV involvement in all fatal 

work zone crashes, 2012–2018. (Source: NHTSA Fatality Analysis Reporting System

[FARS])

CMV involvement in fatal work zone crashes by facility type, 2012–2018 average.

(Source: NHTSA FARS)
SAFETY COMPASS NEWSLETTER · Winter 2021: Volume 15, Issue 1

– 10 –

The Road to Zero: Shifting 

from Vision to Action

By Leah Shahum, Vision Zero Network

No one ever said getting to zero 

would be easy. That is clear to the 

40+ communities across the Nation 

that have committed to the goal of 

Vision Zero: eliminating traffic 

fatalities and severe injuries among 

all road users. 

Whether in cities that are recent 

adopters, such as Tampa, Florida,

and Houston, Texas, or early 

adopters, such as Fremont, 

California, and Washington, DC,

community leaders recognize that 

significant safety improvements on 

our roadways, sidewalks, and 

bikeways require time, energy, and 

the willingness to change some longheld practices and policies. And, let’s 

be honest, change is not always 

easy. 

Still, support for evolving our 

approach to traffic safety is growing 

across the country. Shifting to the 

Safe System approach—as detailed 

in the Fall 2020 edition of FHWA’s 

Safety Compass Newsletter, and 

upon which Vision Zero programs 

are built—is feasible and valuable.

At the nonprofit Vision Zero Network, 

we’ve assessed these early years of 

Vision Zero’s growth and evolution in 

the United States and considered 

best practices and experiences from 

other fields and other nations. While 

the various levels of progress in

“zero traffic deaths” initiatives, such 

as Toward Zero Deaths and Road to 

Zero, are encouraging, it is clear that 

much work lies ahead. The following 

are three areas we consider 

important to advance Vision Zero 

and safe mobility for all.

1. Speeding up efforts to slow 

down 

As detailed in the Fall 2020 edition of 

Safety Compass Newsletter, the 

Safe System approach “involves 

anticipating human mistakes by 

designing and managing the road 

infrastructure to keep the risk of 

mistakes low, and to ensure that 

when mistakes lead to a crash, the 

impact energy on the human body 

stays at tolerable levels.” 

A growing number of communities at 

the local, regional, and State levels

are speeding up efforts to slow travel 

to a safer pace, particularly where 

motorists share space with those 

walking and biking. Recent 

examples include:

• Lowering speed limits, as in

Seattle, Washington, and 

Minneapolis, Minnesota.

• Using automated speed 

enforcement to encourage safe 

speeds, as Washington, DC, has 

done in its recent program 

expansion, and as Philadelphia, 

Pennsylvania, has done along a 

prominent high-injury corridor.

• Redesigning roadways for safer, 

slower speeds, such as Busch 

Boulevard in Tampa, Florida, and 

Rainier Avenue in Seattle, 

Washington.

You can learn more about effective 

speed management strategies in the 

following resources: Institute of 

Transportation Engineers’ (ITE)

Speed Management for Safety, 

FHWA’s Speed Management Safety, 

and the National Association of City 

Transportation Officials’ City Limits. 

2. Elevating equity in safe mobility 

strategies

Research and experience 

demonstrate that not all communities 

have been built or treated the same 

over time, which leads to different

levels of safe mobility choices and 

inequities in outcomes. 

Vision Zero—a data-driven approach 

that is complemented by meaningful 

community engagement—is 

increasing the awareness of and

commitment to addressing these

traditionally underserved

communities. A key strategy is 

recognizing and building on the 

intersectionality of traffic safety and 

issues such as income level;

environmental health conditions; and 

access to jobs, schools, and other 

basic needs. Many cities are 

Speed management strategies. (Source: Vision Zero Network)
SAFETY COMPASS NEWSLETTER · Winter 2021: Volume 15, Issue 1

– 11 –

overlaying their high-injury maps of 

severe traffic injuries and deaths 

with data that highlight relevant 

economic and social factors, 

bringing greater understanding and 

focus to their efforts. 

Examples include the new Vision

Zero Plan developed by the Denver 

Regional Council of Governments in 

Colorado, and the Minneapolis, 

Minnesota, Vision Zero Action Plan.

Analyses in these communities show

a disproportionate number of serious 

injuries and deaths concentrated in a 

relatively small percentage of streets 

that are more likely in low-income 

neighborhoods and communities of 

color. Vision Zero plans are also 

increasingly recognizing the 

intersectionality of traffic safety and

issues of land use and affordable 

housing, such as the Austin 

Strategic Mobility Plan.

3. Think BIG and small for safety

Shifting toward the Safe System 

approach and making transformative 

change entail thinking differently 

about how we gather and use safety 

data. This new approach requires 

shifts in our culture, as well as shifts 

in the attitudes within our own 

institutions and among policymakers 

and the public. It also requires

prioritizing safety over speed in 

policy and planning decisions.

Now is the time for action, evidenced 

most starkly by the disturbing rise in 

pedestrian deaths in the past decade 

in the United States, and as outlined 

in The Road to Zero report that lays 

out three focus areas:

• Doubling down on what works 

through proven, evidence-based 

strategies.

• Advancing life-saving technology

in vehicles and infrastructure.

• Prioritizing safety by adopting a 

Safe System approach and 

creating a positive safety culture.

At the same time, there is value in 

working at a smaller scale and more 

expediently bringing safety changes 

to our streets. This includes using 

pilot projects to learn what works 

and make modifications where 

needed. This tactical urbanism 

strategy offers the chance to act 

nimbly and cost-effectively, while 

also gauging public input and 

involvement. Recent examples 

include the fast-growing movement 

to create “slow streets” or “open 

streets,” in which traffic volume and 

speed are reduced so people can 

walk, bike, and run safely. 

Ultimately, the road to zero traffic 

deaths and severe injuries is not just

about working harder or caring more, 

but also making decisions to 

prioritize safety. This includes a 

willingness to change, assess 

progress, and learn from mistakes. It 

will take time and a lot of hard work, 

but communities across the country

are showing they are ready to move 

vision to action.

For more information, contact Vision 

Zero Network Executive Director

Leah Shahum at 

leah@visionzeronetwork.org. 

Practical Safety Solutions for 

Local and Tribal Roads: A 

Human Factors Approach 

By Rosemarie Anderson, FHWA Office of 

Safety

It is widely acknowledged that traffic 

safety considers and integrates three 

components: the roadway 

environment, the vehicle, and the 

roadway user. Human factors 

principles explain how road users 

gather information, make sense of 

that information, make decisions, 

and execute actions when traveling 

on the roadways. Understanding 

these principles can help identify 

safety issues and select the most 

effective countermeasures that

address those issues on the 

roadways. As we move toward a 

Safe System approach, which aims 

to eliminate fatal and serious injuries Cover of Denver Regional Council of 

Governments Vision Zero Action Plan. 

(Source: Denver Regional Council of 

Governments)

Open streets in Denver, Colorado. 

(Source: Denver Streets Partnership)
SAFETY COMPASS NEWSLETTER · Winter 2021: Volume 15, Issue 1

– 12 –

for all road users by accommodating

human mistakes and keeping 

impacts on the human body at 

tolerable levels, a basic 

understanding and application of 

human factors principles will be 

viable tools for our safety toolbox. 

With this in mind, the FHWA Office 

of Safety has developed a technical

report, Practical Safety Solutions for 

Local and Tribal Roads: A Human 

Factors Approach, aimed at Tribal 

and local transportation safety 

practitioners.

Understanding basic human factors 

principles can be useful when 

identifying and addressing local and 

Tribal road safety issues. This 

understanding can help select the 

most effective countermeasures for 

safety challenges. Using plain 

language, this report provides 

information on the effects of road 

users’ actions on roadway safety,

and how, when, and where

practitioners can use this information 

to improve safety on their roadways. 

This report helps road practitioners 

understand road user capabilities 

and limitations. Practitioners can 

then use that understanding to 

improve safety. The report is a 

complement, not a substitute, to 

technical information found in other 

guidance, such as the Manual on 

Uniform Traffic Control Devices and 

the Highway Safety Manual (HSM). 

The report defines six basic human 

factors principles and provides 

information about using the 

principles to improve safety:

• Information Overload: When road

users are overwhelmed with 

information, they make errors. 

When there is too much 

information, road users may not 

have time to locate the most 

critical information, make sense 

of it, make decisions, and 

respond appropriately. 

• Positive Guidance: Road users 

need information about the road 

ahead so they can prepare the 

correct maneuvers. They need 

accurate information placed in 

the correct location in a form they 

can easily understand. 

• User Expectancy: Road users 

make assumptions about the 

road ahead. When their

expectations are violated, their

planned responses will be 

incorrect, and they may not have 

time to evaluate the roadway and 

change their responses quickly 

enough.

• Priority of Information Needs: 

Information that is necessary for 

basic vehicle control is more 

urgent than guidance (for 

example, choosing the correct 

lane); guidance is more urgent 

than wayfinding information. 

When offering information to road 

users, it is important to consider 

which level of information they 

need. 

• Distraction: When road users’ 

attention is diverted from their 

primary task, they miss important 

information about the roadway 

and other road users. 

Road users should not be expected to read detailed text on a wayfinding sign while 

entering a curve. The blue sign should be relocated upstream. © 2017 FormulaNone 

Cover of Practical Safety Solutions 

for Local and Tribal Roads: A Human 

Factors Approach. (Source: FHWA)
SAFETY COMPASS NEWSLETTER · Winter 2021: Volume 15, Issue 1

– 13 –

• Visual Perception at Night: 

Nighttime limits the timing, 

quality, and location of 

information road users can 

acquire and use for safe travel. 

These principles can help 

practitioners identify issues and 

select potential solutions. The report 

addresses 11 common safety 

challenges, such as unsignalized 

intersections and issues on unpaved 

roadways. It explains how the 

human factors principles relate to 

each safety challenge, how they help 

practitioners anticipate and mitigate 

human error, and how practitioners 

can use the principles to select 

effective, practical solutions. Each 

safety challenge offers online and 

print resources and defines technical 

terms often used when discussing 

that topic. This easy-to-use report

addresses each topic with:

• WHY is this important? 

• WHEN and WHERE is this 

useful? 

• WHAT can we do to improve

safety? 

• An illustration or photo. 

• Useful terms for further reading. 

• Cross-references to relevant 

areas in the report. 

• Useful links for additional 

resources addressing the same 

topic.

For more information, contact 

Rosemarie Anderson at

rosemarie.anderson@dot.gov.

LEARNING TOGETHER

Explaining the Rules of the 

Roundabout

By Jeffrey B. Shaw, P.E., FHWA Office of 

Safety

The FHWA Intersection Safety 

Program recently published two 

Rules of the Roundabout products—

a video and a print handout—that 

educate stakeholders about how to 

navigate multilane roundabouts.

Because not all roundabouts are 

identical, it is important to 

communicate how multilane 

roundabouts differ from single-lane 

roundabouts. With multiple lanes for 

entering, circulating, and exiting a 

multilane roundabout, drivers have 

more decisions to make as they 

approach. These decisions include 

which lane to use for entry and 

circulation so they can exit to their 

desired destination from the proper 

lane. By remembering three basic 

rules, successfully driving through a 

multilane roundabout should be as 

easy as 1-2-3!

The Rules of the Roundabout—

Slow Down, Look around, Be 

Ready to Yield

“The rules” are by no means 

exclusive to multilane roundabouts. 

In fact, these are good rules to apply 

at any intersection, whether it is a 

roundabout or not! As a matter of 

educating motorists about multilane 

roundabouts, these rules are basic 

and the keys for success.

Rule 1: Slow Down

Roundabouts are geometrically 

designed to require vehicles to slow 

on the approach and to circulate at 

speeds of 15–25 miles per hour. 

Slowing down is beneficial for 

several reasons—perhaps most 

obviously that if a crash occurs, the 

severity is significantly decreased

and the chance of serious injury or 

death is much less. Lower speeds 

also make it possible for drivers to 

take in more visual information and 

identify people walking and bicycling 

in time to share the road, as well as 

react and yield to other road users 

when necessary.

Rule 2: Look around

For a motorist approaching a 

roundabout, the process of looking 

around to determine which lane to 

use begins well ahead of reaching 

the yield line. Signs and pavement 

markings indicate which lanes to use 

to go straight through, and which 

Roundabout rule 1 illustration.

(Source: FHWA)

Roundabout rule 2 illustration. 

(Source: FHWA) 
SAFETY COMPASS NEWSLETTER · Winter 2021: Volume 15, Issue 1

– 14 –

lanes to use to turn left or right. It is 

also critical that drivers pay attention 

to whether people are walking and 

bicycling at the roundabout, and 

yield the right-of-way to allow them 

to safely cross or move through the 

roundabout.

Rule 3: Be Ready to Yield

Being ready to yield is the name of 

the game at all roundabouts, but at 

multilane roundabouts, there are a 

few important things to remember. 

First, vehicles in all lanes of the 

roundabout have the right-of-way, so 

an entering vehicle must yield to 

traffic in all lanes. Second, when 

approaching, entering, and exiting, 

it’s always safer and more courteous 

to yield the right-of-way to people 

waiting at crosswalks or bicycling

through the roundabout. Finally, if 

there is a large truck or bus in an 

adjacent lane, it is better to give 

them space and avoid driving next to 

them in the roundabout (in some 

States, it is the law).

These new Rules of the Roundabout 

products have been added to the 

toolbox for conducting outreach and 

education. The video is short enough 

to be widely shared on social media 

platforms and used in public 

education campaigns. The print 

handout features a customizable “for 

more information” field so the right 

person from your agency can be the 

main point of contact. We hope you 

find them very useful in engaging 

stakeholders in your community!

For more information, contact Jeff 

Shaw at Jeffrey.Shaw@dot.gov. 

Integrating Safety into 

Project Purpose and Need

By Phillip Bobitz, FHWA Office of Safety

Establishing the purpose and need 

for a project is a key step in project 

development. Although a purpose 

and need statement is only required 

for projects that require 

environmental assessments or 

environmental impact statements, it 

is a good practice to establish for 

projects that can be processed as 

categorical exclusions because it 

demonstrates the reason for moving 

forward with the project. For 

environmental assessments and 

environmental impact statements, 

the purpose and need statement 

identifies reasonable alternatives. 

The need for a project may be 

related to safety, mobility, 

congestion, geometry, asset 

condition, state of repair, or facility 

deficiencies. In any case, 

transportation professionals should 

always consider future safety 

performance when establishing the 

purpose and need of a project. 

As noted in FHWA’s primer,

Integrating Road Safety into NEPA 

Analysis, there are several 

considerations for transportation 

professionals when incorporating 

safety into a purpose and need 

statement:

• Linking the purpose and need 

statement to safety planning 

processes and documents.

• Linking the purpose and need to 

safety concerns and issues 

raised during public outreach.

• Incorporating explicit justification 

of the extent and nature of the 

safety problem, if one exists.

• Incorporating safety issues for all 

modes of travel and vulnerable 

road users, as appropriate, given 

the project context.

A facility’s compromised safety is 

often the result of another known 

deficiency, such as mobility or facility 

deficiencies. Yet purpose and need 

statements routinely cite that 

geometric features not up to the 

most recent design standards justify 

that a safety problem exists. If safety 

will be included in the need for action 

and purpose for a project, then there 

should be sufficient information to 

determine why safety is an issue. 

Applying data-driven safety analysis

approaches to determine the extent 

and nature of the safety problem 

during the development of a project’s 

purpose and need can be effective 

when defining the true safety 

performance of the roadway. 

Additionally, Road Safety Audits 

(RSA) are an effective tool to identify 

and describe a safety problem to 

support a purpose and need 

statement when crash data are 

limited or a diagnosis is necessary.

Generic statements and lack of 

justification when defining safety in 

purpose and need statements posed 

challenges for projects in 

Pennsylvania. To encourage a more 

data-driven process and facilitate 

Roundabout rule 3 illustration. 

(Source: FHWA) 
SAFETY COMPASS NEWSLETTER · Winter 2021: Volume 15, Issue 1

more objective analysis, the 

Pennsylvania Department of 

Transportation (PennDOT) and 

FHWA Pennsylvania Division office 

collaborated on an update to the 

Needs Study Handbook, PennDOT 

Publication 319. The updated 

guidance transitions from using 

historical crash rates to HSM 

analysis procedures to assess if a 

safety problem exists. The handbook 

provides information on the crash 

data analysis, HSM analysis 

procedures during purpose and need 

development, RSAs that can be 

used to substantiate a safety 

 

4 The U.S. Government does not endorse any products, manufacturers or entities. Trademarks, manufacturers’ names or entity names 

appear in The Safety Compass only because they are considered essential to the objective of the document. They are included for 

informational purposes only and are not intended to reflect a preference, approval, or endorsement of any one product or entity.

problem, and examples of correct 

and incorrect purpose and need 

statements. Although this was a 

culture shift in how safety had 

typically been addressed at this 

stage of project development, the 

changes have enhanced the validity 

of purpose and need statements, 

and they have improved efficiency 

when transitioning to the alternative 

analysis stage.

Ohio Department of Transportation 

(ODOT) published its Guidance for 

Developing Purpose and Need in 

2018, which details the process for 

establishing safety as a need. ODOT 

developed Safety Integrated Project 

(SIP) maps that are updated 

annually through AASHTOWare®

Safety AnalystTM4 to provide Ohio's 

safety and priority locations. Safety 

Analyst uses HSM methodologies to 

identify roadway locations with the 

highest potential for reducing 

crashes, and flags spot locations 

and road segments that have higher 

than predicted crash frequencies. If 

a project study area includes a high 

crash or high-priority location (i.e., a 

location where low-cost 

improvements should be considered) 

that is not on a SIP map, but recent 

crash data suggest there is a safety 

problem, additional analysis and 

consideration are required. Any

project purpose and need statement 

that identifies safety must analyze 

proposed alternatives using HSM 

methodologies. Additionally, in 

Safety Analysis Guidelines, ODOT 

establishes safety assessment 

processes (section 2.4) and 

corresponding flowcharts (appendix 

C) based on project complexity, if 

alternatives are being analyzed, and 

if safety is a component of the 

project’s purpose and need. The 

processes have been successful in 

reducing the identification of safety 

as a need if not supported by data. 

FDOT’s Safety Analysis Guidebook 

for Project Development and 

Environment (PD&E) Studies

provides guidance on integrating 

quantitative safety analysis into the 

ODOT SIP map, Lake County, Ohio. (Source: ODOT)
SAFETY COMPASS NEWSLETTER · Winter 2021: Volume 15, Issue 1

– 16 –

PD&E process. The guidebook 

includes considerations for 

incorporating safety in purpose and 

need statements, encourages the 

use of HSM methods, and defines 

how practitioners should apply HSM 

methods to quantify safety 

performance. The guidebook also 

provides examples of documentation 

and analyses used for safety in 

PD&E studies. 

Identifying, developing, and 

documenting a safety need is an 

iterative process. This iterative 

process starts during planning and 

programming. It is refined during 

project scoping and further refined 

during the environmental process. 

Agencies can capitalize on this 

opportunity to address safety by 

using objective analysis and proven 

safety countermeasures. Taking a 

proactive approach to roadway 

safety before and during the 

environmental process can save 

time and money—and most 

importantly, lives.

For more information, contact Phillip 

Bobitz, FHWA Office of Safety, at 

Phillip.bobitz@dot.gov.

What Are First Responder 

“Struck-by Crashes,” and 

How Are They Being 

Addressed?

By Ana Maria Eigen, D.Sc., Office of Safety 

Research and Development, and James G. 

Austrich, Office of Operations

Struck-by crashes involve law 

enforcement, fire/rescue, emergency 

medical services, 

transportation/public works, and 

tower personnel who sustain serious 

and fatal injuries while conducting

their duties. Often, these crashes are 

not captured in traditional data 

systems, but they can result in 

serious or fatal injuries and 

compromise the safety of the entire 

roadway system. 

The FHWA Office of Safety 

Research and Development and 

FHWA Office of Operations are 

undertaking a task to assess current 

data sources, compile extant data, 

review gaps, and propose a data 

collection strategy that will start to 

quantify this little-understood issue. 

FHWA seeks to:

• Identify current reporting systems

suited to advanced modelling 

using disparate data sets.

• Develop a robust, analysis-ready 

data set that will help identify

disparate data involving injuries 

and fatalities sustained by first 

responders and other road 

workers.

• Analyze that resulting data set.

• Assess the possibility of 

identifying the cause of the 

serious and fatal injuries. 

• Support future enhancement of 

crash typologies to include

injuries and fatalities sustained 

by first responders and other 

road workers engaged in 

transportation incident 

management.

Not Captured in Traditional 

Systems...Yet

With the support of the Office of 

Safety, we seek to rely upon 

forthcoming changes to the Minimum 

Model Uniform Crash Criteria 

(MMUCC) and Model Inventory of 

Roadway Elements (MIRE). 

MMUCC recommends a specific 

minimum set of data elements and 

attributes to describe a crash. The 

MIRE guide identifies traffic 

elements critical to safety 

management. As part of the 

guidance, States will start to 

populate a struck-by variable. It will 

take at least 3–5 years before a 

significant sample of struck-by 

crashes might be examined. For this 

reason, we are taking a grassroots 

approach within representative 

States.

Minimize and Mitigate Serious or 

Fatal Injury

Decades ago, biomechanics 

researchers aimed to identify injury 

patterns and mitigate the effects of 

serious and fatal crashes. Earlier 

biomechanics research that had 

relied on extensive data sets gave 

rise to protective countermeasures, 

which made previously nonsurvivable crashes survivable. With 

new vehicle technology, driver 

education, and enforcement 

countermeasures, some crash 

injuries evolved from non-survivable 

to serious injuries that might be 

addressed by countermeasures. 

Similarly, some serious injury 

crashes evolved to minor injuries or 

no injuries. 

With adequate public education and 

outreach, responder training, and 

operations countermeasures, the 

same goal is now present for law 

enforcement and other first 

responders. The recently initiated 

data assessment task seeks to 

identify and compile disparate data 

sets that will lead to 

countermeasures—to protect those 
SAFETY COMPASS NEWSLETTER · Winter 2021: Volume 15, Issue 1

– 17 –

who protect us. As with the 

biomechanics countermeasures, the 

goal is to transform struck-by 

crashes from an abstract, careerending problem to a quantifiable 

problem that can be analyzed and 

addressed.

How Can Operations 

Countermeasures Make a 

Roadway System Safer? 

By identifying data sources and

providing these data to safety and 

operations experts for analysis, a 

suite of countermeasures is 

envisioned to minimize first 

responder exposure, allowing them 

to secure roadway operations and 

carry out their missions.

If you have questions about this 

research, contact Ana Maria Eigen 

at ana.eigen@dot.gov. 

Educating Young 

Pedestrians: STEP STEM 

Lessons for K–8 Students

By Becky Crowe, FHWA Office of Safety

Congratulations, you have been 

invited to lead an activity for a group 

of students as part of a school event 

or scouting activity! Now what? You 

could search the Internet for ideas, 

you could ask your colleagues, or 

you could use one of the five 

science, technology, engineering, 

and math (STEM) lessons recently

developed by FHWA’s STEP

program. The STEP program 

promotes seven countermeasures 

that help reduce pedestrian fatalities 

at crossing locations:

• Crosswalk Visibility

Enhancements.

• LPI.

• Pedestrian Hybrid Beacon.

• Pedestrian Refuge Island.

• Raised Crosswalk.

• Road Diet.

• Rectangular Rapid-Flashing

Beacon.

STEM educational materials help K–

8 students consider the design of our 

roadways and discover how changes 

can make it safer for people to walk 

and cross the roadway.

The five STEM lessons introduce 

and reiterate the following concepts 

related to roadway design and 

pedestrian safety: 

• Improve the ability of road users

to see each other.

• Shorten pedestrian crossing

distances.

• Increase the likelihood that a

driver will stop for a pedestrian.

• Reduce vehicle speeds.

• Create space for all roadway

users.

• Make it easier for people with a

range of abilities to cross the

street.

Many transportation and 

engineering professional 

associations and university 

transportation research centers

offer publicly available STEM 

lessons. However, most lessons 

are designed for middle school and 

high school students, and very few 

mention walking, bicycling, and 

transit while covering transportation 

topics. Each FHWA STEP STEM 

lesson focuses on the importance 

of pedestrian safety and offers an 

easy-to-follow format with step-bystep instructions, lists of suggested 

materials, and visual aids. 

A supplementary primer describes 

key concepts in an accessible 

manner and offers tips for doing 

hands-on STEM activities with kids. 

The lessons are also flexible and 

include information about tailoring 

the activity for different ages, group 

sizes, educational settings, and 

available space and materials. 

An additional benefit of teaching 

these lessons is that accompanying 

adults will be reminded that the built 

environment serves children just as 

much as it serves adults, and 

hopefully the students will leave your 

activity with a renewed appreciation 

for roadway design and operation.

To learn more about the STEP 

STEM lessons, contact Becky Crowe 

at rebecca.crowe@dot.gov. 

FHWA STEM lesson fact sheet. (Source: FHWA)
SAFETY COMPASS NEWSLETTER · Winter 2021: Volume 15, Issue 1

– 18 –

DATA AND ANALYSIS

New MIRE and MIRE FDE 

Technical Assistance

By Robert Pollack, FHWA Office of Safety 

With the clock ticking toward the 

deadline for when States must have 

access to the MIRE Fundamental 

Data Elements (FDE), the FHWA 

Office of Safety has initiated a new 

technical assistance program for 

providing MIRE and MIRE FDE 

technical assistance. 

FHWA can provide subject matter 

experts for technical assistance to 

State and local agencies on issues 

related to MIRE and MIRE FDEs. 

The technical assistance can be 

used to address what data to collect, 

how to collect it, how to manage and 

maintain the data (governance), and 

how State and local agencies can 

transfer and share data.

Background

MIRE is a list of more than 200 data 

elements that are essential for an 

adequate roadway inventory 

database that supports the State’s 

HSIP. The MIRE FDEs are a subset 

of the MIRE data elements required 

by the Moving Ahead for Progress in 

the 21st Century Act and the Fixing 

America’s Surface Transportation 

(FAST) Act. These data elements 

are useful for State roadway 

inventories because they support an 

analytic approach in developing and 

maintaining the State’s HSIP and the 

SHSP.

This program will also provide 

technical assistance to the FHWA 

Office of Safety for several additional 

MIRE and MIRE FDE-related 

activities, which include:

• Establishing criteria to determine

State compliance with the MIRE

FDE requirement that States

have access to MIRE FDEs for

all public roads by September 30,

2026.

• Conducting a MIRE–MIRE FDE

peer exchange.

• Establishing a database to

assess States’ progress toward

compliance with the MIRE FDE

requirement.

This MIRE–MIRE FDE technical 

assistance project is now underway.

For more information, contact Robert 

Pollack, project manager, at 

Robert.pollack@dot.gov. 

Crash Data Summary 

Templates: A Systemic Tool 

for Everyone

By Jerry Roche, FHWA Office of Safety, 

Matthew Enders, WSDOT, Catherine 

Chestnutt, VHB, Jeff Gooch, VHB, and Frank 

Gross, VHB

Washington State Department of 

Transportation (WSDOT) developed 

a Crash Data Summary Template as 

a diagnostic tool to support a 

systemic approach to safety across 

WSDOT and its local agency 

partners. FHWA recognized the 

value of this tool for other State 

DOTs and local agencies and added 

features and functions to the 

template, including accessibility 

enhancements for people with visual 

impairments.

Complementary to the hot-spot 

approach that addresses high-crash

locations, the systemic approach 

addresses high-risk locations. As 

shown in the figure below, the 

systemic approach identifies 

common contributing factors for a 

focus crash type, such as fatal and 

serious injury crashes involving a 

roadway departure, and implements 

countermeasures on roadways with 

characteristics similar to those that 

have experienced the focus crash 

type. FHWA’s systemic safety 

project selection tool outlines steps 

to identify focus crash types. 

The Crash Data Summary Template 

can help agencies organize and 

review their crash data in support of 

the systemic approach. Specifically, 

analysts can use the spreadsheet to 

summarize the distribution of 

available data and identify factors 

Systemic approach to safety management. 

(Source: FHWA)
SAFETY COMPASS NEWSLETTER · Winter 2021: Volume 15, Issue 1

– 19 –

that contribute to crashes. As shown 

in the first table, analysts enter crash 

data by attribute for the study period 

of interest. The spreadsheet then 

sums the data, calculates the 

proportion for each attribute, and 

highlights attributes that are overrepresented. Note the spreadsheet 

contains many more rows and 

individual columns for up to 5 years 

of individual data. Users can insert 

additional years or rows as needed.

The key to using the spreadsheet is 

to identify when the proportion of 

crashes is much higher in one group 

compared to another, which 

indicates over-representation. One 

way to identify over-representation is 

to compare the proportion of fatal 

and serious injury crashes to total 

crashes, as shown in the first table. 

In this example, alcohol-related 

collisions are over-represented on 

Example County roads—they 

account for 6.1 percent of fatal and 

serious injury crashes compared to 

1.9 percent of total crashes. 

Similarly, single-vehicle and head-on 

crashes are over-represented. 

These could be areas to focus on for 

addressing fatal and serious injury 

crashes in Example County. The 

Crash Data Summary Template 

automatically highlights cells if the 

proportion of fatal and serious injury 

crashes is either 5 percent higher or 

at least two times greater than the 

proportion of total crashes. 

Another way to identify overrepresentation is to establish one or 

more groups to compare against. 

This is shown in the second table on 

the following page. Overrepresentation is still indicated by a 

higher proportion of crashes in one 

group compared to another, but now 

the comparison is against similar 

jurisdictions or the statewide 

average. In this example, the 

number of fatal collisions is overrepresented on county roads in the 

Example County compared to county 

roads in comparison group 1. It also 

shows that single-vehicle and headon crashes are over-represented for 

total crashes, but only head-on 

crashes in Example County are 

significantly over-represented for 

fatal and serious injury crashes 

compared to county roads in 

comparison group 1. While the table 

only shows a comparison to one 

group, the spreadsheet tool includes 

three comparison groups, and you 

can add more as desired.

The only requirement for using the 

spreadsheet is having access to 

crash data. Most local agencies 

have access to crash data for their 

jurisdictions, or they can obtain data 

from the data steward agency in 

their State (e.g., DOT, department of 

public safety, or department of motor 

vehicles). Agencies can access 

crash data for free from the Fatality 

and Injury Reporting System Tool 

(FIRST) if they don’t have ready 

access. FIRST is maintained by 

NHTSA and includes data for 

crashes involving a fatality. 

The Crash Data Summary Template 

is highly editable and customizable. 

Even if the crash data do not 

represent the same variables used in 

the Washington State example, the 

tool can still meet agencies’ needs. 

Users can simply modify the 

crash/vehicle attributes in the tool to 

match their data by leaving a column

Fatal and Serious Injury 

Crashes All Crashes

Example County Roads Example County Roads

Year 1–5

Subject Data Year 1–5 % Year 1–5 %

Overall Numbers

Total # Collisions 213 N/A 13,628 N/A

# Fatal Collisions 38 17.8 38 0.3

# Serious Injury Collisions 175 82.2 175 1.3

# Alcohol-Related Collisions 13 6.1 254 1.9

Total # Fatalities 41 N/A 41 N/A

Total # Serious Injuries 211 N/A 211 N/A

Manner of Crash

Single Vehicle 89 41.8 2,552 18.7

Angle 65 30.5 3,751 27.5

Head On 27 12.7 328 2.4

Rear End 24 11.3 5,301 38.9

Sideswipe – Same 

Direction

5 2.3 1,225 9.0

Sideswipe – Opposite 

Direction

3 1.4 450 3.3

(Blank) 0 0.0 21 0.2

Crash data input for Example County roads.
SAFETY COMPASS NEWSLETTER · Winter 2021: Volume 15, Issue 1

– 20 –

blank or inserting or deleting rows. 

Agencies are also not limited by the 

years of available crash data. 

Importing more years into the tool 

provides a larger sample and 

increases the ability to detect overrepresentation; however, at the 

same time, more years of data can 

create challenges if there are 

changes in the data set over time. 

Successful Implementation 

WSDOT has provided the Crash 

Data Summary Template to all 

counties as the first step in 

developing their county road safety 

plans. WSDOT has begun using the 

tool to support cities as well. 

Specifically, Washington compares 

the data for a given city or county to 

other cities or counties in the region 

and State. The goal is to summarize 

crash data to identify focus areas 

(i.e., emphasis areas) and priorities 

for the plan. 

Matthew Enders, who works with the 

local programs division for WSDOT, 

said, “Sharing this tool with every 

agency developing a safety plan has 

been a significant benefit to the local 

safety program in Washington. Each 

agency has a better understanding 

of which crash types and factors to 

analyze in their plan. This, in turn, 

has made the plans and projects 

more effective and has given 

everyone a good starting point as 

they begin drafting their safety 

plans.”

The Crash Data Summary Template 

has also been used by local 

agencies all over the United States

as part of the Every Day Counts

Data-Driven Safety Analysis

initiative. This initiative provides

support for local road safety plans 

(LRSP) by identifying focus crash 

types, focus facility types, and 

potential risk factors. FHWA has

worked with local agencies to 

summarize data, making it easier to 

digest and communicate issues to 

colleagues, stakeholders, and in 

LRSPs. These include agencies in 

the following States and Tribes:

• Alabama

• California

• Colorado

• Georgia

• New Hampshire

Fatal/Serious Injury

Crashes Only Total Crashes

County Roads in 

Comparison 

Group 1

Example

County Roads

County Roads in 

Comparison 

Group 1

Example

County Roads

Crash-Related Statistics Year 1–5 % Year 1–5 % Year 1–5 % Year 1–5 % 

Overall Numbers

Total # Collisions 70,986 N/A 213 N/A 2,235,038 N/A 13,628 N/A

# Fatal Collisions 7,053 9.9 38 17.8 7,053 0.3 38 0.3

# Serious Injury Collisions 63,933 90.1 175 82.2 63,933 2.9 175 1.3

# Alcohol-Related Collisions 3,764 5.3 13 6.1 45,184 2.0 254 1.9

Total # Fatalities 8,155 N/A 41 N/A 8,155 N/A 41 N/A

Total # Serious Injuries 74,136 N/A 211 N/A 74,136 N/A 211 N/A

Manner of Crash

Single-Vehicle 28,315 39.9 89 41.8 346,486 15.5 2,552 18.7

Angle 19,602 27.6 65 30.5 618,408 27.7 3,751 27.5

Head On 5,002 7.0 27 12.7 62,105 2.8 328 2.4

Rear End 14,208 20.0 24 11.3 816,812 36.5 5,301 38.9

Sideswipe - Same Direction 2,623 3.7 5 2.3 243,479 10.9 1,225 9.0

Sideswipe - Opposite Direction 1,028 1.4 3 1.4 51,444 2.3 450 3.3

(Blank) 208 0.3 0 0.0 96,304 4.3 21 0.2

Crash data summary for Example County and roads in comparison group 1.
SAFETY COMPASS NEWSLETTER · Winter 2021: Volume 15, Issue 1

– 21 –

• New York

• Tohono O’odham Nation

• Washington

A workshop attendee from a county 

in Alabama shared, “In reviewing our 

crash data, there were not clear 

areas of crashes. Very few if any hot 

spots existed, so learning about 

systemic approaches and seeing 

which severe crash types were overrepresented was very helpful in our 

county's regard.” 

Benefits 

The Crash Data Summary Template 

is an accessible, easy-to-use, 

editable tool that supports systemic 

analysis for any agency. The tool 

presents the data in an easily 

digestible format. With the 

spreadsheet, agencies can identify 

focus crash types and focus facility 

types to inform the risk factor 

analysis and identify potential risk 

factors to study further. Agencies 

can also compare the crashes in 

their local jurisdictions to other 

jurisdictions. The tool is fully 

accessible for people who have 

visual impairments, and people can

toggle the Accessibility switch on 

and off in each worksheet, using cell 

A1 or using ctrl+shift+A.

Limitations

While the Crash Data Summary 

Template can help identify potential 

risk factors, there is a need to use 

other tools to further investigate and 

confirm risk factors because the 

Crash Data Summary Template 

spreadsheet does not include noncrash locations. By integrating 

roadway and exposure data, there is 

an opportunity to identify which 

factors are over-represented at 

crash locations compared to noncrash locations. FHWA’s Crash Tree 

Maker—available at FHWA’s LRSP 

Do-it-Yourself (DIY) website—is one 

tool that can assist with this analysis. 

For more information about the tool, 

refer to FHWA’s Winter 2020 Safety 

Compass Newsletter. Since the 

Winter 2020 edition, the Crash Tree 

Maker has been updated to make 

the tool more accessible, and to add 

several export options and eliminate 

nodes with zero crashes from the 

crash tree. 

Availability

The Crash Data Summary Template

is available for free from the LRSP 

DIY website. Contact Jerry Roche at 

Jerry.Roche@dot.gov for training or 

technical assistance on the systemic 

safety analysis process, including 

the Crash Data Summary Template 

and Crash Tree Maker. 

NEW RESOURCE ROUNDUP

Speed Management 

Noteworthy Practices 

Report

By Guan Xu, P.E., FHWA Office of Safety 

Technologies

Speeding is a significant threat to 

safety and results in about 10,000 

deaths each year. Speeding is 

defined as exceeding the posted 

speed limit or driving too fast for 

conditions. It is also a crosscutting 

safety issue that impacts many 

safety areas, such as pedestrians, 

bicyclists, rural road safety, impaired 

driving, and distracted driving. 

Speeding is a complex safety 

problem to solve, as it involves many 

factors. These factors include public 

attitudes, vehicle performance, 

enforcement strategies, judicial 

decisions, and road user behavior. 

These are in addition to factors of 

roadway design and operations and

posted speed limits that 

transportation professionals normally 

deal with.

Over the past couple decades, the 

FHWA and USDOT speed 

management team has collaborated

with safety partners, such as ITE, to 

tackle speeding safety issues. We

have also recognized that while 

speeding is a national problem, 

effective solutions must be applied 

locally. In recent years, speed 

management has received increased 

attention from State and local 

agencies, especially those that have 

embraced a Vision Zero approach to 

safety. Realizing the situation, and 

the challenges and needs coupled 

with it, we have been redirecting our 

efforts toward providing direct 

assistance and training to agencies 

and practitioners. 

Delivery of eight noteworthy 

practices is another result of 

FHWA’s leadership efforts toward 

creating effective resources for 

practitioners at State and local 

levels. The newly published 

Noteworthy Speed Management 

Practices is the result of extensive 
SAFETY COMPASS NEWSLETTER · Winter 2021: Volume 15, Issue 1

– 22 –

outreach with many different agency 

types across the United States. 

Outreach efforts have included 

roundtable workshops, webinars,

meetings with relevant associations 

(e.g., Insurance Institute for Highway 

Safety’s national forum on speeding, 

Vision Zero), solicitation through 

committees (e.g., TRB, ITE), and 

extensive literature reviews. 

Ultimately, the project’s Technical 

Advisory Committee selected eight

practice cases from 93 potential 

noteworthy practices. 

Noteworthy practices cover the most 

important aspects of speed 

management, including:

• Developing and

implementing a citywide

Strategic Speed

Management Program with

comprehensive speed

management activities, key

indicators, targeted

achievement metrics, and

integrated effort such as

enforcement.

• Setting safe, consistent, and

enforceable speed limits for

all roadway users for rural

and urban environments.

• Applying engineering and

alternative enforcement

countermeasures, such as

self-enforcing roadways and

speed safety cameras, to

achieve the set posted speed

limits for the safety of all

roadway users.

• Improving crash data through

targeted reporting of

speeding-related crashes,

which provides consistency

and addresses crashes by

identifying contributing

factors.

• Enforcing through

transparency and

educational initiatives rather

than a strict enforcement

detail.

Detailed information on the 

noteworthy speed management 

practices is provided in the 

Noteworthy Speed Management 

Practices report, which summarizes 

challenges, takeaways, and lessons 

learned. 

For more information, contact Guan 

Xu at Guan.Xu@dot.gov. 

USDOT Pedestrian Safety 

Action Plan and Summary 

Report Now Available 

Online

By Abdul Zineddin, FHWA Office of Safety

Pedestrian safety is one of the 

FHWA’s top priorities. This past

summer the FHWA hosted three 

webinars that formed the USDOT 

Pedestrian Safety Summit. These 

webinars helped collect input on 

actions USDOT might take in the 

near term to address pedestrian 

safety. Based on the webinars and 

the input received, USDOT

developed the following two 

documents:

1. USDOT Pedestrian Safety

Action Plan.

2. USDOT Summit on Pedestrian

Safety Virtual Series: A

Summary Report.

These documents are included on 

the Pedestrian Safety Summit

website, which also includes links to

the summit webinars and other

resources. 

For more information, contact Abdul

Zineddin at abdul.zineddin@dot.gov.

HFST Recommendations 

Report Now Available

By Joseph Cheung, FHWA Office of Safety

The FHWA Office of Safety recently 

published Recommendations Report 

for High Friction Surface Treatments: 

Candidate Sites, Materials, and 

Construction. 

HFSTs are intended to restore and 

maintain pavement friction to reduce 

crashes. They are most effective in 

reducing run-off-the-road and other 

wet-weather crashes. HFSTs have

proven most effective on rural and 

urban horizontal curves and tightradius loop ramps. They have also 

been applied at high-volume 

intersections and downhill 

approaches where stopping sight 

distance is limited. HFST is a thin 

layer of high-quality polish-resistant 

aggregate bonded to the pavement 

Cover of Noteworthy Speed 

Management Practices. (Source: 

FHWA) 
SAFETY COMPASS NEWSLETTER · Winter 2021: Volume 15, Issue 1

– 23 –

surface with a polymer resin binder. 

HFST was one of the Every Day 

Counts 2 (EDC-2) safety initiatives. 

When applied to targeted locations,

it has been proven highly effective in

reducing wet-pavement-related 

crashes.

Highlights of the report include: 

• Factors to consider when

selecting sites for HFST.

• Suitability of existing pavement

conditions to receive HFST.

• Recommendations on when to

use or not use HFST as a safety

countermeasure.

The report synthesizes the 

noteworthy practices for HFST 

based on Federal agency, State

agency, and industry experience, 

including relevant recommendations 

from the recently completed LongTerm HFST Performance Monitoring 

Study. By properly identifying 

candidate sites, selecting the best 

materials, and implementing highquality construction practices, 

agencies will have the best return on

investment for their HFST 

installations. Agencies can see more 

widespread HFST deployment and a 

longer-lasting safety 

countermeasure, resulting in greater 

crash reductions. 

For more information, contact 

Joseph Cheung at 

joseph.cheung@dot.gov. 

Update to Pedestrian and 

Bicyclist Road Safety Audit 

Guide and Prompt List

By Tamara Redmon, FHWA Office of Safety

The FHWA Office of Safety recently 

completed the Pedestrian and 

Bicycle Road Safety Audit Guide and 

Prompt List, which is an update to 

the Pedestrian Road Safety Audit 

Guidelines and Prompt Lists (2007) 

and Bicycle Road Safety Audit 

Guidelines and Prompt Lists (2012). 

Because pedestrian- and bicyclefocused RSAs are often

simultaneously conducted, this new 

guide provides content for both 

modes in one concise document. 

An RSA is a formal safety 

performance examination of existing 

or future roads or intersections by an 

independent, multidisciplinary team. 

It qualitatively estimates and reports 

on potential road safety issues and 

identifies opportunities for 

improvements in safety for all road 

users. 

This guide is intended to support 

agencies interested in conducting 

pedestrian- and bicycle-focused 

RSAs. It includes information on 

safety risks for both modes, the RSA 

process, necessary data, and the 

roles and responsibilities of the RSA 

team. Also included are updated 

prompt lists for pedestrians and 

bicyclists to use in the field. 

This guide will help practitioners 

understand pedestrian and bicyclist 

issues in their jurisdictions. It can 

also support transportation agencies 

in achieving other goals, such as

enhancing quality of life, improving 

community health, and increasing 

pedestrian and bicycle mode share. 

The aim of an RSA is to answer the 

following questions, which will also 

apply to pedestrian- and bicyclefocused RSAs: 

• What elements of the road may

present a safety concern? To

what extent, to which road users,

and under what circumstances?

• What opportunities exist to

eliminate or mitigate identified

safety concerns?

The focus of an RSA is safety while 

working within the context of 

mobility, access, surrounding land 

use, and aesthetics. RSAs enhance 

safety by bringing together a 

multidisciplinary team that identifies 

potential safety issues affecting all 

Cover of Recommendations Report 

for High Friction Surface 

Treatments. (Source: FHWA)

Cover of Pedestrian and Bicyclist 

Road Safety Guide and Prompt List. 

(Source: FHWA)
SAFETY COMPASS NEWSLETTER · Winter 2021: Volume 15, Issue 1

– 24 –

road users under all conditions, and 

suggests measures for the design 

team or responsible agency to 

consider. While all RSAs should 

include a review of multimodal 

safety, a pedestrian- and bicyclefocused RSA strives to improve 

identified safety issues that may 

have resulted from changes in land 

use and mode choice over time, or

from inadequate consideration of 

walking and cycling in previous 

planning and design processes. 

For more information, contact

Tamara Redmon at

Tamara.redmon@dot.gov. 

Now Available: Tribal Crash 

Reporting Toolkit

By Adam Larsen, FHWA Office of Tribal 

Transportation, and Tom Bragan, NHTSA 

National Center for Statistics Analysis

The new Tribal Crash Reporting 

Toolkit enables Tribal governments

to improve collection and use of 

crash data. The toolkit helps Tribal 

governments maintain data 

sovereignty while consistently 

collecting a standardized set of data 

elements for each crash. 

NHTSA published the toolkit in 

October 2020 to help Tribes in all 

phases of safety data improvement. 

The self-assessment tool identifies 

elements of safety data 

management that could be 

improved. The crash reporting facts 

and fictions tool further enhances the 

planning of safety data 

improvements by dispelling common 

barriers to crash data improvement. 

A data analysis tool describes 

common ways that safety data are 

used to improve transportation 

safety. Other tools contain the 

framework needed to establish a 

crash reporting system. These 

include a crash reporting form, 

officer’s instruction manual, 

database, quality control guide, and 

a manual that describes all of the 

available tools. All of these tools are 

available at no cost at 

https://www.tribalsafety.org/tribalcrash-reporting-toolkit. 

The toolkit is based on the Model 

Minimum Uniform Crash Criteria 

(MMUCC) and was developed by 

NHTSA in partnership with FHWA. 

Several Tribes participated in a pilot 

of the toolkit contents. The 

Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe police 

department tested the crash 

reporting form and database. 

The FAST Act addressed crash 

reporting in Tribal areas by stating, 

“Without more accurate reporting of 

crashes...it is difficult or impossible 

to fully understand the nature of the 

problem and develop appropriate

countermeasures,” and “Improved 

crash reporting by Tribal law 

enforcement agencies would 

facilitate safety planning and would 

enable Indian tribes to apply more 

successfully for State and Federal 

funds for safety improvements.” In 

response to the FAST Act, FHWA 

developed a report to Congress, 

entitled Tribal Governments and 

Transportation Safety Data. Later, 

the Bureau of Indian Affairs Office of 

Justice Services published Indian 

Highway Safety Program: Tribal 

Crash Reporting Assessments. 

Based on this research, at least 20

percent of Tribal police departments 

may not be using a standardized 

crash report. Also, half of the Tribes 

that had participated in a recent 

study said they use a paper 

reporting system rather than an 

electronic system. The Tribal Crash 

Reporting Toolkit addresses these, 

and many other, improvements for 

crash reporting.

For more information, contact Tom 

Bragan at Tom.Bragan@dot.gov or 

Adam Larsen at

Adam.Larsen@dot.gov. 

FHWA Launches Local Road 

Safety Plan Do-it-Yourself

Website 

By Hillary Isebrands, FHWA Resource Center 

Safety and Design Team, and Jerry Roche, 

FHWA Office of Safety

FHWA recently unveiled a unique 

website to help local agencies 

reduce serious and fatal crashes on 

their roadways. The LRSP DIY 

website includes resources local 

agencies and their partners need to 

create these lifesaving plans.

Approximately 40 percent of the 

Nation's fatalities occur on local 

roadways—an average of 12,000 

deaths a year. LRSP is an FHWA 

Proven Safety Countermeasure that 

local agencies can use to effectively 

identify at-risk locations and deploy 

safety solutions. Matthew Enders, 

technical services manager and 

LTAP director, said developing 

LRSPs “has been probably the most 

For more information on LSRPs, check out our 2.5-minute video: 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wzdm798MoI8
SAFETY COMPASS NEWSLETTER · Winter 2021: Volume 15, Issue 1

– 25 –

positive experience I’ve had in 

working with safety over a couple of 

decades. This is something where 

I’ve seen growth and benefit for the 

individual local agencies.” 

FHWA, in cooperation with the 

National Association of County 

Engineers and the National LTAP, 

has spent the past 5 years helping 

local agencies create these plans. 

With more than 23,000 local 

agencies in the country, it is 

impossible to deliver in-person 

training to all of them. In fall 2019, 

FHWA began developing a onestop-shop website, with a goal to 

make it as personable and intuitive 

as possible to emulate in-person 

training in a virtual environment. 

Each page has an introduction video 

that explains the primary objectives 

of that step. Additional videos on the 

right sidebar, such as Local Agency 

Insights, feature more than 26 

practitioners sharing their 

experiences in developing LRSPs, 

which enables users to learn from 

their peers.

Each page includes a Tools and 

Resources section with a wealth of 

information in the form of guides, 

templates, tools, tutorials, training, 

examples, and helpful links. Users 

can view and download pertinent 

material at the right time and place 

as they work through the steps of 

developing their LRSPs. 

The site was officially launched 

October 1, 2020, during Rural Road 

Safety Awareness Week, and 

announced by Administrator Nason.

“Our goal is to connect FHWA to 

America’s 3,000 counties and 

20,000 cities and towns that could 

benefit from a local road safety

plan,” Nason said. “This innovative 

new tool includes everything local 

agencies need to develop an LRSP 

to help reduce fatalities on their local 

roads.”

This website is the first of its kind for

the Office of Safety, and it has the 

potential to draw in new agencies

and reach thousands of local

agencies that have not yet embarked 

on this journey of getting people 

home safely. In just the first month,

the site surpassed 17,000 page

views.

For more information, contact Jerry

Roche at jerry.roche@dot.gov or 

Hillary Isebrands at

Hillary.isebrands@dot.gov. 

Landing page of FHWA’s LRSP DIY website. (Source: FHWA)
SAFETY COMPASS NEWSLETTER · Winter 2021: Volume 15, Issue 1

– 26 –

ANNOUNCEMENTS

New Roadway Safety 

Champions—Partners for 

Zero Deaths Web Page 

Launched

By Norah Ocel, FHWA Office of Safety

It is not only necessary to recognize 

those within our communities who

spend time and energy prioritizing 

roadway safety and saving lives, but 

it is also critical to encourage others 

to do the same. Having access to 

those champions, knowing who they 

are, what they do, how they do it, 

and highlighting the importance of 

their efforts is a great way to build a 

stronger and more collaborative 

transportation safety community.

With that in mind, the Office of 

Safety has created a Roadway 

Safety Champions-Partners for Zero 

Traffic Deaths web page. It will 

highlight on a monthly basis the 

great work many communities do. 

The purpose of this site is to show 

our appreciation to those road safety

champions for their critical work in 

saving lives on the nation’s roads. 

The web page is scheduled to go 

live on January 1, 2021. 

If you are a roadway safety 

champion, THANK YOU!—because 

only working together...we’ll get to 

zero.

Please visit the web page at 

https://rspcb.safety.fhwa.dot.gov/cha

mpions_partnering.aspx or contact 

Norah Ocel at norah.orcel@dot.gov. 

Upcoming Conferences and

Events

FHWA-Federal Railroad 

Administration (FRA) Joint 

Webinar Series: Interconnection 

Technology, February 3, 2021, 2–

3:30 p.m. EST.

Don’t miss the upcoming FHWAFRA joint webinar on interconnection 

technology! This quarter, we’ll be 

taking a deeper dive into 

interconnection technology, building 

on October’s webinar on 

interconnection and the Ohio 

experience. 

Please register at the link here. 

Note: non-FHWA registrants will 

need to log in with an FHWA 

webinar account, or create a new 

account.

For more information, contact Esther 

Strawder at 

esther.strawder@dot.gov, or to

troubleshoot registration, contact 

Kayce Georgi at 

kayce.georgi.ctr@dot.gov.

22nd Annual National Bike 

Summit, February 28–March 3, 

2021. 

(https://bikeleague.org/summit) 

The 2021 National Bike Summit will 

take place online, February 28–

March 3, 2021. The theme is “Bikes: 

Our Vehicle for Change.”

2021 Lifesavers National 

Conference on Highway Safety 

Priorities, April 26–28, 2021, 

Online. 

(https://lifesaversconference.org/) 

The 2021 National Lifesavers 

Conference on Highway Safety 

Priorities, originally scheduled to 

take place in Long Beach, California, 

will be held entirely online. The 

Lifesavers conference brings 

together a unique combination of 

public health and safety 

professionals, researchers, 

advocates, practitioners, and 

students committed to sharing best 

practices, research, and policy 

initiatives that are proven to work. 

Joint ITE International and 

Southern District Annual Meeting 

and Exhibition, August 4–20, 

2021, Online. 

(https://www.ite.org/eventsmeetings/ite-virtual-annual-meetingand-exhibition/).

This meeting and exhibition is an 

international membership platform 

for professionals working to improve 

transportation mobility and safety.

Transportation Research Board 

Meeting, January 2021, Online. 

(http://www.trb.org/AnnualMeeting/A

nnualMeeting.aspx)

The 100th Annual Meeting will be a 

virtual event featuring a series of 

events scheduled throughout the 

month of January 2021. Committee 

Meetings will be held January 5 – 8 

and 11 – 15. Sessions and Exhibits 

will occur January 21 – 22 and 25 –

29. The theme for the 2021 meeting 

is Launching a New Century of 

Mobility and Quality of Life. 

. 
SAFETY COMPASS NEWSLETTER · Winter 2021: Volume 15, Issue 1

– 27 –

The Safety Compass Newsletter is a publication of the U.S. Department of Transportation, Federal Highway Administration (FHWA).

FHWA publishes the Safety Compass Newsletter three times a year. We can be reached at:

FHWA Office of Safety

1200 New Jersey Ave., SE

Room E71-320

Washington, DC 20590

The Safety Compass Newsletter is available online at the FHWA Office of Safety website at: 

http://safety.fhwa.dot.gov/newsletter/safetycompass/. 

We welcome your comments and highway safety-related articles. The purpose of this newsletter is to increase highway safety awareness and 

information and to provide resources to help save lives.

We encourage readers to submit highway safety articles that might be of value to the highway safety community. Send your comments, 

questions, and articles for review electronically to Tara McLoughlin at: tara.mcloughlin@dot.gov. 

Visit the FHWA Office of Safety Virtual Booth in the TRB Exhibit Hall!

If you are attending the annual meeting of the Transportation Research Board, be sure to “visit” our virtual booth in the 

exhibit hall to check out all the Office of Safety has to offer! During the hours listed below, you can chat live with one of 

our experts. A schedule of topics and times will be available in the booth.

Exhibits will be available 24/7 during the meeting, but they will be staffed from 11:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. Eastern 

Standard Time on the following days:

January 21, 22, 25, 26, 27, 28, and 29

For more information, please contact Tara McLoughlin at 202-366-2176 or tara.mcloughlin@dot.gov.