Traffic Crashes

FHWA Greenlights More Red Lanes for Buses in San Francisco
The Federal Highway Administration approved 50 applications of red transit-only lanes to be painted throughout San Francisco. Already used on four streets in a pilot program, the lanes have proven effective but are opposed by some business owners.
Do Traffic Crashes Increase When Recreational Marijuana Sales Are Legalized?
A new report by the insurance industry studying the relationship between crashes and legalized recreational marijuana sales found that crashes can be expected to increase by three percent. A news report from Denver questions their findings.

Saving Lives: Including Sidewalk Bollards in Street Design
Countless lives were likely saved by a strategically placed bollard on W. 45th Ave. which stopped a motorist who had driven three blocks on city sidewalks, mowing-down as many pedestrians as possible, from entering the Times Square pedestrian plaza.
A Deadly Crash Is an Accident Because it Isn't Terrorism
Cable news networks interrupted broadcasts on Thursday morning with breaking news: a vehicle had just driven three block on the sidewalks in Times Square, New York, resulting in massive casualties. Anchors asked, "Was it terrorism or an accident?"

Walking While Black: The Racial Disparity in Pedestrian Fatalities
Pedestrians of color are more likely to be killed in traffic crashes.
Battle of Technologies Shaping-Up for Connected Vehicles
The U.S. Department of Transportation proposed a new rule on Dec. 13 for automakers to require vehicle-to-vehicle technology to save lives, but critics charge the radio-based technology will be obsolete when the rule takes effect in about seven years
Expect Passenger Vehicles to Talk to Each Other in the Near Future
The U.S. Department of Transportation wants light-duty vehicles to communicate with each other via advanced technology, known as connected vehicle technology, to prevent crashes. The vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) rule would be phased in over five years.
Horrific School Bus Crash in Chattanooga Results In Five Counts of Vehicular Homicide
The driver has been arrested and charged with the deaths of five children who died at the scene of the one-vehicle crash in which the bus slammed into a tree on Monday afternoon. The National Transportation Safety Board is on the scene.

Disabling Red Light Cameras Increases Traffic Fatalities
A new study shows what happens when cities remove red light cameras, which have become targeted by many motorists and eliminated by at least 158 cities. Fatal crashes increased 30 percent compared with area cities that kept the controversial cameras.
Automotive Braking Improvements: Pedestrian and Cyclist Benefits Included
NHTSA's announcement that automatic emergency braking will become standard on almost all new vehicles by 2022 will have dramatic safety implications for drivers and passengers, but will it prevent crashes with pedestrians and cyclists?

New Study Reveals Causes of Lower American Life Expectancy
A study published February 9 in the Journal of the American Medical Association points to three reasons for the life expectancy being lower for Americans than in other developed nations. Care to guess what they are?
Demographic Changes Spell Trouble Ahead for Auto Industry
It's not only young adults who are delaying in getting drivers licenses, but a drop in licenses among all age groups according to a new analysis of license data from 1983-2014 by the University of Michigan Transportation Research Institute.
Idaho Stop—Meet the California Stop
Similar to a local proposal by San Francisco cyclists to reduce priority for for ticketing cyclists for rolling through stop signs, a state senator hopes to do with state legislation for motorists making "California Stops" at red lights.
It's not Zero, But Traffic Deaths Decreased Last Year in New York City
Traffic deaths dropped by 27 in 2015 to 230, a reduction of over 10 percent from 2014. Pedestrian deaths decreased only slightly. Bicyclists fared better: deaths dropped by 30 percent.
White House Smart Cities Initiative Uses Connected Vehicle Technology
Secretary of Transportation Anthony Foxx unveiled a $42 million transportation program in Manhattan that is part of President Obama's new $160 million Smart Cities Initiative. Funds will go to NYC, Tampa, and Wyoming to reduce congestion and crashes.
The Case For and Against Red Light Cameras
Eric Jaffe of CityLab looks at what went wrong with what should have been a clear way to employ technology to reduce crashes and save lives, and what can be done to stem the tide of cities removing red light cameras.
The Exorbitant External Costs Caused by the Trucking Industry
A new report from the Congressional Budget Office places the spotlight on the trucking industry in terms of the social, health ,and environmental costs it imposes on society but does not pay for, i.e., externalities.
Another Scary Example of Driving with Impunity
Seattle Bike Blogger Tom Fucoloro directed his ire at the Bellevue, Washington police treatment of a particularly horrendous pedal misapplication crash by a new driver that came within inches of hitting a nine-month old baby asleep in a crib.
AAA Takes on Teenage Driving in New Study
Teenagers have a lot on their minds, which is not a bad thing, except when it comes to getting behind the wheel. A report released March 25 reveals that six out of ten teen crashes involve driver distraction—400 percent greater than a prior study.
Study: Congestion Pricing Improves Traffic Safety
According to new research, London's congestion pricing program has improved traffic safety both in the cordoned city center and in the free adjacent areas. Although traffic is moving faster, fatalities have been reduced.
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