Towards Zero Death: A National Strategy on Highway Safety White Papers

1. Towards Zero Death: A National Strategy on Highway SafetyWhite Papers Hugh McGee, VHB Inc Stakeholder Workshop August 25-26, 2010

2. White Papers • Future View of Transportation: Implications for Safety • Safety Culture • Safer Drivers* • Safer Vehicles* • Safer Vulnerable Users* • Safer Infrastructure* • Emergency Medical Systems* • Data Systems & Analysis Tools* • Lessons Learned from Safety Programs In Other Countries * Included in this presentation.

3. White Paper Objectives • Identify strategies for reducing fatalities through: • Safer Drivers • Safer Vehicles • Safer Infrastructure • Safer Vulnerable Users • Improved EMS • Improved Data Systems and Analysis Tools • Provide: • Estimates of fatality reduction • Costs – how much and who pays • Challenges for implementation • Opportunities

4. White Paper Objectives • WPs not meant to be comprehensive—FOCUS ON KEY STRATEGIES • Challenged to be ‘thought-provoking’ & think outside the box • How can known strategies be implemented more widely. • These WPs along with 3 others provide input to discussions that will lead to a National Strategic Safety Plan • THESE WPS ARE EXPERT OPINIONS!

5. General Summary For Each White Paper • Magnitude of Problem • Major Topics Areas • Key Strategies and Programs • Challenges and Obstacles • Areas for Opportunity

6. Safer DriversNeil LernerJeremiah SingerJames JennessWestat

7. Safer Drivers – Driver Behavior Problem • Crash causation: Driver behavior contributes to >90% of crashes • Crash outcome: about 50% of occupant fatalities are unrestrained • Driver behavior may not be sole cause of crash, and countermeasure does not necessarily have to be behavioral • But problems of behavior are key component for major reduction in fatalities

8. Safer Drivers – Major Topic Areas • Historically the “big three”: • Speeding, • Restraint system use, • Impairment (alcohol, illegal drugs, medication, and fatigue) • Additional relevant topics: • Driver groups with high fatality rates • Older drivers (dealt with in “Vulnerable Users” white paper) • Teen drivers • Driver distraction • Including technology use and multi-tasking

9. Safer Drivers – Noteworthy Trends • Technology in the vehicle and on the road • Shift in how people view the driving task • Powerful new study methods to understand and correct driver behavior

10. Safer Drivers – Areas of Opportunity • Traditional strategies still important, but there is opportunity in some new approaches in: • Increase restraint use • Speeding • Driver distraction • Teen drivers

11. Increase Restraint Use Initiatives • Effective nighttime enforcement • Enhanced seat belt reminder systems & other vehicle interventions • Detect and alert for unbelted rear seat passengers • Devise teen-oriented vehicle systems • Improve system design for child safety seats

12. Reduce Speeding Initiatives • Expand use of in-vehicle speed monitoring technologies • Use automated speed enforcement technologies to achieve broad area enforcement

13. Reduce Driver Distraction • Promote effective enforcement of distracted driving laws • Foster change in driver attitudes about multitasking risks & responsibilities • Support technology developers • Target teen drivers • Develop adaptive driver interface systems • Develop criteria for design of digital outdoor commercial signage.

14. Increase Safety of Young Drivers • Implement & strengthen GDL laws & enact primary seatbelt laws. • Promote enforcement of GDL restrictions and community support of GDL • Encourage high level parental supervision during intermediate stage of GDL • Promote safer vehicles for teen drivers

15. Safer VehiclesRichard Retting Sam Schwartz EngineeringRon Knipling safetyforthelonghaul.com

16. Safer Vehicles • Decades of improvements in motor vehicle safety technology • Improving safety requires moving beyond past accomplishments • Specific vehicle design features and technologies offer substantial promise/evidence for reducing traffic fatalities

17. Safer Vehicles - Strategies For most major crash types there are potential vehicle countermeasures Source: Adapted from Sayer and Flanigan (2010); statistics from NHTSA.

18. Safer Vehicles – Strategies • Strategies can be categorized as applicable to: • Passenger vehicles • Large trucks • Cross-cutting and highly applicable to both

19. Safer Vehicles –Strategies Passenger Vehicles • Alcohol Detection & Interlock • Emergency Brake Assist • Crashworthiness Enhancements

20. Safer Vehicles - Strategies Large Trucks • Improved Brakes/Shorter Stopping Distances • Roll Stability • Onboard Safety Monitoring • Electronic Onboard Recorders • Side Object Detection Systems • Vehicle Condition Monitoring • Automated Transmissions • Truck-Specific Navigation Aids • Enhanced Trailer Conspicuity • Enhanced Trailer Rear Lighting/Warnings • Video Side Mirrors • Collision Aggressivity Reductions

21. Safer Vehicles – Strategies • Electronic Stability Control • Forward Collision Warning Systems • Lane Departure Warning Systems • Backing Collision Warnings • Driver Alertness Warnings • Automatic Speed Control Cross-Cutting Applicable to Cars and Trucks • Electronic Drivers License • Intelligent Lighting Systems • Intersection Collision Avoidance Systems • Road Condition Warning Systems • Electronic Data Recorders

22. Safer Vehicles - Strategies • Alcohol Detection & Interlock • Automatic Speed Control • Electronic Stability Control • Emergency Brake Assist • Lane Departure Warning Systems • Driver Attention Monitoring • Ejection Mitigation • Improved Side Impact Protection • Side Object Detection Systems • Daytime Running Lights High Priority Vehicle Strategies

23. Safer Vehicles -Barriers to Implementation • Need to achieve extremely high levels of accuracy for crash-avoidance technologies • Many important R&D issues remain • Lack of consumer demand/willingness to pay • Need for initial/ongoing driver training • For vehicle-to-infrastructure technologies , sheer size of roadway system (4 million miles of public roads) • Concerns about legal liability • Privacy, public opinion (e.g. automatic speed control)

24. Safer Vulnerable Road Users: Pedestrians, Bicyclists, Motorcyclists, and Older UsersCharlie Zegeer and William HunterUniversity of North Carolina Highway Safety Research CenterLoren StaplinTransAnalytics, LLC Fran Bents and Richard HueyWestatJanet BarlowAccessible Design for the Blind

25. Safer Vulnerable Users – Magnitude of Problem • Pedestrians • 4,654 fatalities - 11 percent of all traffic fatalities (2007) • Pedestrian crash trends continue to show greater problems for children and older adult pedestrians • Bicyclists • 716 fatalities - 2 percent of all traffic fatalities (2008) • An additional 52,000 pedalcyclists were injured

26. Safer Vulnerable Users – Magnitude of Problem • Motorcycles • Approximately 5,200 fatalities per year • Fatalities have more than doubled in the past decade. • Infrastructure may present unique hazards to motorcyclist. • Older Users • 25% of drivers will be age 65 or older by 2030. • Drivers 85 and older are themselves 8X higher risk of death per mile traveled than safest group (ages 30-60). • Approximately 5,000 drivers aged 70 and above are killed each year

27. Safer Vulnerable Users – Strategies for Pedestrians • Complete and market a revised AASHTO pedestrian guide to local and State officials • Further refine the MUTCD to address pedestrian safety problems • Expend funding and implementation of a National Safe Routes to School Program with National Safety Education Program • Promote and advance the use of photo enforcement

28. Safer Vulnerable Users – Strategies for Pedestrians • Develop and implement specific national guidelines for safer bus stop design and placement • Expand pedestrian safety training to engineers, planners, and other professionals nationwide (supported by pedestrian safety research) • Improve the reflectorization/conspicuity of pedestrians • Develop and implement pedestrian-friendly ITS vehicle and roadway features

29. Safer Vulnerable Users – Strategies for Bicyclists • Reduce motor vehicle speed in urban and suburban areas • Reduce distracted driving by motorists and distracted riding by bicyclists • Educate motorists about how to share the road with bicyclists • Educate bicyclists about how to ride in traffic and the use of proper equipment • Reduce intersection conflicts

30. Safer Vulnerable Users – Strategies for Motorcyclists • Advisory Councils for the Federal and State Governments • AASHTO Highway Design Handbook for Motorcyclists • National motorcycle helmet law • Rider to driver communication • Standard motorcycle lighting displays • More rider training and certification

31. Safer Vulnerable Users – Strategies for Older Users • Incorporate national standards into State-level design manuals. • Mandatory “refresher” driving course to retain unrestricted license. • Required screening for visual, mental, and physical capability regardless of age for license renewal • Immunity for health professionals for voluntary reporting older patients to DMV they are concerned might have driving impairments. • A national system for labeling prescription and over-the-counter medications better indicating the risk for impairment of driving.

32. Safer Infrastructure Paul Jovanis Eric Donnell The Thomas D. Larson Pennsylvania Transportation Institute

33. Safer Infrastructure: Speeding

34. Safer Infrastructure: Roadway Departure

35. Safer Infrastructure: Intersections

36. Safer Infrastructure- Strategies • Automated speed enforcement • Safety center of excellence • Performance-based design

37. Automated Speed Enforcement Oct 1971 Compulsory Seat belts Dec 1962 Random Breath Testing Early 1990s Automated Enforcement

38. Opportunities and Challenges Opportunities Challenges Reliable & accurate equipment Speed exceedance limits Covert/overt decision Rational speed limits • Possible 25% reduction in fatalities and injuries • Benefits = $16 million/year in Scottsdale, AZ

39. Regional Safety Centers of Excellence • Implement state-of-art safety management processes • Education and training needs • Technical assistance to local and state programs • Safety coordination

40. Opportunities and Challenges Opportunities Challenges Demand for education programs Regional collaboration among stakeholders • Effective allocation of resources • Consistent national implementation of Strategic Highway Safety Plans • Supported by state-of-art methods and tools • Certification of safety professionals

41. Performance-based Design Paradigm

42. Opportunities and Challenges Opportunities Challenges Research needed to develop revised design policies Cultural change required • Explicitly consider safety in planning and design (may include construction and maintenance) • Mandate use of existing tools to support safety decision-making • Systematic road safety management

43. Emergency Medical Services (EMS) The National Association of State Emergency Medical Services Officials

44. EMS – Some Background • Trauma to motor vehicle occupants is 4th leading cause of non-fatal injuries treated in Emergency Departments • Less than half of all fatal crash victims die at the scene– those who die later are potentially preventable. • EMS providers are at greater risk of death on the job compared to police & firefighters- 74% of EMS fatalities are transportation related. • Crash rates of ambulances are 7 to 10 times greater than heavy trucks. • FARS >> 2 out of 3 fatalities associated with ambulance collisions were either occupants of other vehicles or pedestrians. • CDC claims that severely injured victim who received care at a Level 1 trauma center within 1hr had 25% reduction in risk of death

45. EMS – Some Issues • EMS is a complex system and organized differently across jurisdictions--both private and public; about 15K local EMS agencies. • Leadership of comprehensive EMS system nationwide under NHTSA Office of EMS; but no direct authority over the provision of EMS. • State and territorial EMS offices do not have ‘roadmap’ for how best to move towards unified and effective practices for safety of EMS personnel and to critical difference that can be made in patient outcomes when EMS functions in optimal manner. • National plan affords opportunity to partner within and between states and nationally across disciplines in unprecedented way.

46. EMS - Strategies The six phases of EMS represented by NHTSA’s ‘Star of Life’ provides framework for organizing strategies to reduce fatalities.

47. Detection Systems • Need standard dictionary and .xml schema for Telematics Data Definitions and Transmisson Standards (OnStar) • Develop national Advanced Automatic Collision Notification algorithms, protocols & training. • AACN predictors for need for vehicle extrication.

48. 9-1-1 Access & Capabilities • Enhanced 9-1-1and Phase II Compliance– to identify caller address/location • Next Generation 9-1-1—data transmission across wireless and internet-based systems

49. EMS Response & Capacity • Widespread adoption of National EMS Scope of Practice Model & National EMS Education Standards. • Vehicle extrication education and competency standards • Integrated ambulance-based safety systems—regulate ambulances like large trucks? • IntelliDriveSM for EMS vehicles– V2V and V2I • Evidence-based E Vehicle Operations Standards

50. On-Scene Medical Care • Adopt National Trauma Triage Protocol • National unified goal for traffic incident management embracing law enforcement, fire, EMS, rescue, roadway maintenance, towing and traffic control.