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Read the latest news and announcements from traffic safety interest groups and about traffic safety topics here.
The percentage of passenger vehicle drivers talking on handheld phones in 2023 remained unchanged from the previous year’s level of 2.1 percent (Figure 1 and Table 1). The percentage of drivers speaking with visible headsets while driving increased to 0.5 percent from the previous year’s level of 0.4 percent (Figure 1 and Table 2). Drivers’ […]
The Department of Transportation’s Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) provides funding for states to improve safety at public crossings through the Railway-Highway Crossings Program (RHCP). GAO found that states used RHCP funding to address safety risks. For example, states added or upgraded existing equipment at crossings—such as bells, lights, and gates—from 2019 through 2023. During the […]
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 […]
Risky driving behaviors, such as speeding and distraction, are prominent contributing factors in motor vehicle crashes. Finding ways to reduce such behaviors is paramount and will have a positive impact on traffic safety. One such avenue, smartphone apps, can monitor and track these behaviors as well as deliver timely and tailored feedback to drivers. Indeed, […]
Distraction from smartphones is an important road safety issue and efforts to identify effective countermeasures remain a priority. Most U.S. consumers use either an Android or iOS smartphone device that come with a feature that can block or limit distractions (referred herein as Do Not Disturb, DND). Unfortunately, only a small percentage of drivers use […]
Work zones may present imminent safety hazards for roadway workers as well as passing motorists due to several factors, including driver distraction, changes in traffic patterns, narrowed rights of way, and general congestion. In addition to safety concerns, work zones, although necessary for roadway construction and maintenance activities, present mobility issues and frustrations for traveling […]
The Transportation Emergency Response Application (TERA) is a scenario-based training system that provides training and exercise scenarios and materials for command-level and operational roles in public transportation agencies, state departments of transportation, and airport emergency operations centers for natural and human-made disaster incidents. TCRP Research Report 253: Transportation Emergency Response Application (TERA): Migration Options Beyond […]
The availability of large-scale, high-resolution, and consistently collected road data will improve the safety of all road users. The use of artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning (ML), and big data is key in providing the information needed to power data-driven, public, and proprietary safety analysis tools, as well as predictive and other systemic safety tools. […]
Tow trucks and other roadside service vehicles (RSVs) must safely operate in a wide range of roadway environments and conditions, from sunny afternoons to combinations of darkness, smoke, fog, rain, and snow. RSV visibility in these diverse operating conditions is paramount and static and flashing emergency or hazard vehicle lighting are common countermeasures to enhance […]
The national estimate of seat belt use by adult front-seat passengers of passenger vehicles in 2024 was 91.2 percent, not statistically different (at the 0.05 level) from 91.9 percent observed in 2023. The seat belt use rate estimate represents the percentage of occupants who are belted during an average daylight moment. Read the results here.