The safety performance of autonomous vehicles (AVs) is fundamental to protecting all road users, but public perception of their safety is equally important, as it shapes trust, acceptance, and willingness to share the road with this...
Preliminary Statewide Integrated Traffic Records System (SWITRS) data for 2024 indicates that traffic crashes caused 3,376 preventable deaths statewide, of which 950 were pedestrians and 148 bicyclists. Additionally, in 2024, there were 16,142 people seriously injured in traffic crashes in California, including 2,531 pedestrians and 1,255 bicyclists. These deaths are unacceptable and preventable. Ensuring that our communities are safe for walking, biking and rolling is critical for community...
The Community Pedestrian and Bicycle Safety Program (CPBSP) was launched by the UC Berkeley Safe Transportation Research and Education Center (SafeTREC) in collaboration with California Walks to reduce pedestrian and bicycle fatalities and serious injuries in California communities. The CPBSP prioritizes working in communities at disproportionate risk for road traffc injuries and addressing the safety needs of people who are underserved by traditional transportation resources and planning.
The CPBSP engages participants in active transportation planning and strengthens the capacity...
While the overall number of motor vehicle fatalities and serious injuries have generally decreased in recent years, vulnerable road user fatalities and serious injuries continue to rise (National Center for Statistics and Analysis, 2024). Public health professionals, their methods, and their models are essential to incorporate within active transportation best practices because it allows decision makers to capture the ideas, desires, and needs of communities.
A new research brief by UC Berkeley Safe Transportation Research and Education Center (SafeTREC) staff...
Public health safety concerns surrounding road use in the United States are prevalent, with the number of fatalities and serious injury crashes for those walking, biking, and rolling continuing to reach all-time highs. These burdens are also disproportionately felt by the most vulnerable road users, especially those in low-income and BIPOC communities.
A new research brief by UC Berkeley Safe Transportation Research and Education Center (SafeTREC) staff Noelani Fixler, Lucia Ornelas, and Kris Leckie aims to explores how the ...
UC Berkeley SafeTREC, in collaboration with California Walks, launched the Community Pedestrian and Bicycle Safety Program (CPBSP) to reduce pedestrian and bicyclist fatalities and serious injuries in California. We partner with communities across California to discuss, plan, and implement safety improvements and projects. The CPBSP prioritizes working in communities that are at disproportionate risk for road traffic injuries and addressing the safety needs of people who are underserved by traditional transportation resources and planning.
Under federal statutes, transportation planners have an obligation to actively engage community members and to conduct equity-based analyses on transportation plans to ensure that people of color, low-income people, and other historically disenfranchised groups are neither disproportionately burdened nor denied the benefits of transportation investments. Planning professionals have an ethical and moral responsibility to involve and engage the communities they serve—to intentionally center community members in planning decision-making processes regarding their communities and ensure equity...
In April, 2023 the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) released the latest traffic safety data, noting that 42,939 people were killed in motor vehicle crashes in 2021, a 10 percent increase from 2020. Key findings from the report also reveal increasingly dangerous and unsafe roadways for vulnerable road users. Traffic fatalities in 2021 vs 2020 increased 14% for older adults (65+), 13% for pedestrians, and 1.9% for pedalcyclists. These deaths are unacceptable and...
According to the latest traffic safety data from the National Highway Safety Administration (NHTSA), there were 42,915 traffic fatalities in 2021, a 10.5% increase from 2020. This alarming trend was also seen for those walking and biking in our communities, with 7,342 pedestrian fatalities (a 13% increase from 2020) and 985 bicyclist/pedalcyclist fatalities (a 5% increase from 2020) in 2021. These deaths are unacceptable and preventable. Ensuring that our communities are safe for...
