. According to the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), the use of cell phones while driving is the “new DUI”…”an epidemic.” This follows a new study that indicates driver distraction being a contributing factor to some 3,000 plus roadway fatalities last year alone. As a result, the NTSB called for a nationwide ban on the [...]

Earlier this month, the U.S. Department of Transportation announced that road fatalities in 2010 were the lowest they’ve been since 1949.  That’s quite awhile ago. In 1949, a new VW bug cost about $900. There were only two of them sold in the U.S.  Gas cost 26 cents a gallon and the Hokey Pokey was a radio [...]

The data is in and the results are clear. Radar speed signs work in work zones. The same electronic displays that have been used effectively to slow cars in school zones and around neighborhood streets can have a dramatic impact on worker safety in work zone applications as well. In a 2008 study conducted by [...]

  As we begin the new year, we can add Kansas to the list of 30 states that now ban text messaging while driving. This ban, along with a variety of other new driver safety regulations being adopted across the country, reflect a growing concern over the effect that driver distractions are having in causing [...]

  Got a speeding ticket lately? Think it was unjust? Think that the only ones who really care about speeding are police officers looking to fill a quota? Well, according to a new study by the California Office of Traffic Safety, you’d be wrong. The study was the first statewide effort by the OTS to [...]

  In cities across the country, getting local governments to respond to traffic-calming issues can be difficult even during the best of times. It becomes even more difficult when times are tough and municipal funds are short. There is hope however. Neighborhood groups and private citizens from San Jose, California to Brooklyn, New York are [...]

  We know they work. Over the past dozen years or so, a variety of studies have shown that radar speed signs are effective at slowing cars. In some of these studies, they rank the highest among traffic-calming strategies being tested – better than rumble strips, flashing lights and even speed bumps. Even more impressive [...]

  If you are at all interested in pedestrian safety issues or are looking for possible funding for your traffic calming project, you should know about the federal Safe Routes To School (SRTS) program. The idea is to improve the ability for children to walk or ride their bikes to school. Not a bad idea for [...]

  I CAME ACROSS A study by Safe Kids USA that looked at distracted drivers in school zones. While it’s no surprise that distracted drivers are more likely to cause or be involved in an accident, some of the specifics noted in the report were surprising to me. For instance: Fact. Drivers using a phone [...]

  I RECENTLY HAD a chance to speak with Tad Blanton, a field operations supervisor for Medford, Oregon’s Public Works. He manages four crews that work year round on every type of public works project you can imagine – from underground maintenance to structural repairs, paving and concrete work. Many of the projects take place outdoors alongside [...]