Comunidades Activas y Seguras (Active and Safe Communities) Program

Comunidades Activas y Seguras (Active and Safe Communities) is a joint program of UC Berkeley SafeTREC (SafeTREC) and California Walks (Cal Walks). After working with communities of diverse backgrounds through our statewide Community Pedestrian and Bicycle Safety Training program, we decided to create a curriculum tailored to better meet the needs of Spanish-speaking communities. Since its inception in 2021, Comunidades Activas y Seguras (CAyS) has been dedicated to enhancing walking and biking safety through a community-centered approach. We prioritize cultural and linguistic sensitivity to effectively identify and address walking and biking safety concerns. Our team works with a local Planning Committee to customize the workshop to ensure that it meets the unique needs of the community.

CAyS collaborates with communities to:

  • Improve safety for pedestrians and bicyclists in Spanish-speaking communities in California;

  • Engage communities in active transportation safety discussions and be a part of decision-making processes;

  • Connect community members and stakeholders within participating communities to each other and create opportunities for collaboration;

  • Partner with stakeholders working on issues adjacent to transportation safety, e.g: environmental justice, housing, food security; and

  • Create shareable educational content for social media and other virtual outlets.

2025 Comunidades Activas y Seguras Trainings

This year, the CAyS program will partner with up to four communities throughout California with large monolingual Spanish-speaking populations to discuss, plan, and implement active transportation safety improvements. Applications are now live and you can apply online

  • For early consideration, please apply by Wednesday, December 18, 2024. Decision by January 17, 2025. 

  • For regular consideration, please apply by Friday, January 24, 2025. Decision by February 28, 2025.

  • Applications will continue to be accepted on a rolling basis as space permits. 

This year, we will be providing follow-up support to two former CAyS sites in California to support their community’s implementation of programs, projects, and recommendations outlined in their community action plan. We will partner with these communities in two overarching areas: strengthening data-driven narratives and community leadership and capacity strengthening.

If you would like more information about the CAyS program or follow-up support, or have questions, please contact us at safetrec@berkeley.edu

Our past work

As of 2024, SafeTREC and Cal Walks have conducted 134 pedestrian and bicycle safety trainings throughout California, including 13 CAyS trainings. Explore our interactive map of the CPBSP Program to view summary reports where available of each CAyS workshop, including ideas identified during the process and recommendations for pedestrian/bicycle safety projects, policies, and programs.

 The interactive online map of the CPBSP Program where summary reports are available for each CAyS site across California.

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Adults and youth wear safety vests and participate in a walking and biking assessment.

Community members and agency representatives participate in a walking and biking assessment during a CAyS workshop in Tulare, California.

An instructor leads a group at a workshop.

An instructor leads a CAyS workshop in Orange Cove, California.

A group of adults wearing safety vests participate in a walking and biking assessment.

Community members and agency representatives participate in a walking and biking assessment during a CAyS workshop in Lamont, California.

A group of adults participate in a mapping activity at a workshop.

Community members participate in a mapping activity during a CAyS workshop in Oxnard, California.

Los Caminos de las Vías: RadioNovelas

From 2021-2024, CAyS workshop participants created RadioNovelas, podcasts that highlight community concerns and propose solutions through the power of storytelling. These audio-visual projects were intended to be used as a tool for advocacy to create their local community visions for a healthy, walkable, and bikeable community. A RadioNovela episode developed from a workshop held in Tulare in 2024 highlighted the experience of community members and students walking and biking to school. Participants shared that they are in need of infrastructure, such as complete sidewalks, high-visibility crosswalks, and traffic-calming measures, to ensure the safety of students walking and biking to and from Roosevelt Elementary School and Alice Mulcahy Middle School. This episode and all past Camino de las Vias podcasts can be found on Soundcloud.

What to expect

A Planning Committee of local residents, schools, agencies and other safety partners is recruited for each community we work with to plan the CAyS workshop. During the workshop, the Project Team reviews local crash data and the community’s traffic safety experiences, educates participants on pedestrian and bicycle safety best practices, guides participants on a walking and biking safety assessment, and helps participants identify actionable next steps. The CAyS program is committed to equitable and accessible community outreach and engagement in active transportation planning. We prioritize working in communities that are at higher risk for road traffic injuries and addressing the safety needs of people who are underserved by traditional transportation planning and resources. Through collaborative work, the program helps build rapport between residents, local officials, agency staff, coalitions, and other stakeholders.

Activities may include

  • Safe System Approach presentation: A presentation of an adapted Safe System Approach, including its principles, layers of protection, and strategies to eliminate fatal and serious injuries on the road;

  • Pedestrian and bicyclist crash overview: Analysis and presentation of crash data in the community’s focus area and crash trends to identify causes and potential solutions to active transportation safety challenges;

  • Walking and biking assessment: An assessment of pedestrian and bicyclist safety conditions, concerns, and road user behavior patterns around selected routes conducted either in the field or as a table-top activity;

  • Action planning: An interactive activity with local residents and safety advocates to develop a community-driven action plan to improve walking and biking safety in their communities;

  • Arrival and dismissal observations: Observation of desired and risky behaviors of people walking, rolling, and driving in school zones; and

  • Experiences and stories: To increase understanding of effective advocacy approaches. This may include developing audiovisual tools for advocacy with the community.

Communities can use this training to

  • Support grant applications for infrastructure and community education programs;

  • Implement education efforts;

  • Build or strengthen local coalitions;

  • Increase understanding of effective policy change approaches; 

  • Expand outreach within communities; and

  • Explore and implement Safe Routes to School programming.

Interested in learning more about the program or an upcoming training? Please contact us at safetrec@berkeley.edu. 

Funding for this program is provided by a grant from the California Office of Traffic Safety (OTS) through the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA).

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