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New and emerging sources of data generated from travelers using mobile devices, vehicles, infrastructure, and other sources provide agencies with opportunities to change how they manage traffic and their transportation systems. These sources of data offer agencies an incentive to enhance or develop the capabilities of their transportation management systems to collect, compile, save, use, […]
Impaired driving continues to be a significant public health and public safety problem in the United States. In 2021 some 30 percent of the 42,915 traffic fatalities involved alcohol-impaired drivers (drivers with blood alcohol concentrations [BACs] of .08 grams per deciliter or higher). In addition, there has been a significant increase in drug-impaired driving and […]
A statistical projection of traffic fatalities for 2023 shows an estimated 40,990 people died in motor vehicle traffic crashes, a decrease of about 3.6 percent as compared to 42,514 fatalities reported to have occurred in 2022. The fourth quarter of 2023 represents the seventh consecutive quarterly decline in fatalities beginning with the second quarter of […]
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration works to reduce the occurrence of distracted driving and raise awareness of its dangers. This risky driving behavior poses a danger not only to vehicle occupants but pedestrians and pedalcyclists as well. Driver distraction is a specific type of driver inattention that occurs when drivers divert attention from the […]
Work zones present many challenges for trucks and buses – narrow lanes, sudden stops, traffic pattern shifts, and uneven road surfaces require all drivers to stay alert. In fact, large trucks are over represented in work zone crashes, making up nearly one-third of fatal work zone crashes. It’s critical that all road users approach work […]
This study explored how children are restrained when traveling in ride-share vehicles. An observational survey was conducted from July to August 2022. The target population was children from birth to 12 years old transported in ride-share vehicles. About half of children observed were traveling unrestrained and the remainder were either using the vehicle seat belt […]
This document takes an expansive view and considers how pavement and bridge conditions can contribute to system performance areas, such as highway safety, freight mobility, or reliability. The document also considers other impacts, such as how attributes such as pavement shoulders, pavement friction, or bridge conditions contribute to highway safety, freight movement, noise reduction, and […]
The percentage of passenger vehicle drivers talking on handheld phones decreased from 2.5 percent in 2021 to 2.1 percent in 2022 (Figure 1 and Table 1). The percentage of drivers speaking with visible headsets while driving remained unchanged from the previous year’s level of 0.4 percent (Figure 1 and Table 2). Drivers’ visible manipulation of […]
On December 4, 2015, President Obama signed into law Public Law 114-94, the Fixing America’s Surface Transportation Act (FAST Act). The FAST Act funds surface transportation programs—including, but not limited to, Federal-aid highways—at over $305 billion for fiscal years (FY) 2016 through 2020. It is the first long-term surface transportation authorization enacted in a decade […]
Walking, biking, and other sustainable modes of transportation are critical options in communities throughout the United States, particularly for economically disadvantaged communities. However, fatalities among pedestrians and bicyclists have been increasing even faster than the overall fatalities among all road users, which has drawn a focus on the safety of vulnerable road users (defined below). […]