Improving Safety on Urban Arterials: Lessons from Australia & New Zealand

Presenters: 

• Jonah Chiarenza, USDOT Volpe Center
• Tamara Redmon, FHWA Office of Safety Technology
• Darren Buck, FHWA Office of Human Environment

U.S. road users were killed in increasing numbers between 2010-2021. Total traffic fatalities rose 30% over that time distributed unevenly between road users: while non-ped/bike fatalities were up 23%, bicyclist fatalities rose nearly 60% and pedestrian fatalities rose over 70% (NHTSA). U.S. practitioners and advocates know WHAT to do to improve safety and access for people walking, biking, and rolling. The biggest challenges lie in HOW to get it done. This session will present practical solutions to building safety and access improvement projects, as gleaned from Australia and New Zealand peers who have been advancing the Safe System approach for over two decades, developing the novel practices that contribute to their continuously improving transportation safety statistics. In June 2023, the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) published "Improving Pedestrian Safety on Urban Arterials: Learning from Australasia". This report identifies (a) policies, (b) planning practices, and (c) design/engineering standards proven to reduce traffic fatalities and serious injury and improve access for people walking, biking, and rolling on arterial roads. This session will present key findings from the report.  Following brief lectures, the presenters will lead interactive break-out sessions on practical, technical solutions in three key goal areas emerging from the report: 1) Smarter Speed Management, 2) Proactive Road Safety Auditing Processes, and 3) Coordinated Transportation and Land Use Planning for Complete Networks. FHWA will use feedback from APBP participants to inform future actions for our two-year study implementation phase, which began in May 2023.