Motorized Vehicle Safety

Join our January 13th virtual Office Hours to learn more about our 2026 programs advancing safer walking, biking and rolling for all

January 5, 2026
Submitted by Lisa Peterson

Applications are now being accepted for the UC Berkeley Safe Transportation Research and Education Center (SafeTREC) 2026 programs, which includes:

The California Safe System Institute for Road Safety;

The Community Pedestrian and Bicycle Safety Program (...

Course Announcement: Spring 2026 Traffic Safety and Injury Control

December 8, 2025
Submitted by Lisa Peterson

Busy urban intersection with people walking, rolling in the crosswalk

Spring 2026: Traffic Safety and Injury Control

Civil and Environmental Engineering C265 | Cross-Listed with Public Health C285

3 Units | Class #29661 | Tu - Th | 3:30-5 p.m.

O'Brien 212

Course Overview

Traffic crashes are a major cause of death and disability worldwide. In the United States, they are the leading cause...

2025 series of SafeTREC Traffic Safety Facts released!

October 27, 2025
Submitted by Karen Nguyen Vo and Cindy Chen
The 2025 SafeTREC Traffic Safety Facts series features the latest trends and data on various traffic safety topics, including pedestrian and bicyclist safety, drug and alcohol-impaired driving, and emergency medical services.

UC Berkeley Safe Transportation Research and Education Center (SafeTREC) is excited to announce the release of the 2025 series of Traffic Safety Fact Sheets, which feature traffic safety data and trends at the national and state level on twelve road...

UC Berkeley SafeTREC receives $4.9 million in grant funding from the California Office of Traffic Safety

November 18, 2025
Submitted by Lisa Peterson
Logo of UC Berkeley SafeTREC California Office of Traffic Safety Logo For immediate release

UC Berkeley SafeTREC receives $4.9 million in grant funding from the California Office of Traffic Safety
...

Join our office hours to learn about our 2026 programs

December 1, 2025
Submitted by Kris Leckie

The UC Berkeley Safe Transportation Research and Education Center (SafeTREC) launched applications for our 2026 programs last month, which includes:

The California Safe System Institute for Road Safety program;

The ...

SafeTREC at the 2026 Transportation Research Board Annual Meeting

November 25, 2025
Submitted by Lisa Peterson

TRB in white text over a dark purple background with a spiralled circle in multiple colors in the bottom left and event details in white text to the rigth

UC Berkeley SafeTREC is excited to participate in the Transportation Research Board (TRB) 105th Annual Meeting, held on January 11-15, 2026 in Washington, D.C. The...

2026 SafeTREC program applications are now open!

November 21, 2025
Submitted by Kris Leckie
Apply now for our 2026 programs!

A group of twelve people wearing fluorescent safety vests stand together to discuss roadway conditions and concerns.

The UC Berkeley Safe Transportation Research and Education Center (SafeTREC) is excited to announce applications are now being accepted for...

New interactive report highlights the safety impacts of vehicle weight on vulnerable road users

September 30, 2025
Submitted by Karen Nguyen Vo

A person in a motorized wheelchair on a sidewalk in between a truck and SUVnd

Photo credit: Matthew Raifman

UC Berkeley SafeTREC has released a new interactive final report by transportation safety researcher Matthew Raifman and research data analyst Amalia Stahl for the research project, "Safety Impacts of Vehicle Weight on...

A context-sensitive roadway classification framework for speed limit setting in the US

Cheng-Kai Hsu
Melody Tsao
Julia B. Griswold
Robert J. Schneider
John M. Bigham
2025

In the US, speed limit setting (SLS) procedures have historically relied on driver-behavior-based methods, such as the 85th percentile speed, which are considered objective and allow for consistent application. However, this approach has notable shortcomings, including drivers’ tendency to underestimate their speeds, speed creep, and insufficient consideration of vulnerable road users, which may conflict with the Safe System Approach and Vision Zero initiatives endorsed by the USDOT (US Department of Transportation). In contrast, context-sensitive approaches, which classify roads...

SafeTREC at the 2024 Transportation Research Board Annual Meeting

December 8, 2023
Submitted by Lisa Peterson

UC Berkeley SafeTREC researchers and graduate students were excited to participate in the Transportation Research Board (TRB) 103rd Annual Meeting, held in person this year January 7-11, 2024 in Washington, D.C. The program covered all transportation modes, with sessions and workshops addressing topics of interest to policy makers, administrators, practitioners, researchers, and representatives of government, industry, and academic institutions. The full 2024 program, including details on all sessions and...