AASHTO
Strategic Highway Safety Plan
AMERICAN ASSOCIATION OF STATE HIGHWAY AND TRANSPORTATION OFFICIALS
The Problem - Today
Highway deaths
43,443 in 2005
The fatality rate is unacceptably high:
1.47 deaths per 100 million VMT
STRATEGIC HIGHWAY SAFETY PLAN
The Problem – Tomorrow
Of every 90 children born this year…
One will die violently
in a highway crash
during his/her
lifetime.
70 of every 100 will be
injured in a crash during
their lifetimes…some
more than once.
STRATEGIC HIGHWAY SAFETY PLAN
The Goal
Reduce the
incidence and
severity of
motor vehicle
crashes.
Lower the rate to
not more than 1
fatality per 100
million VMT
And…
STRATEGIC HIGHWAY SAFETY PLAN
Save Lives
Prevent 9,000 deaths each year
in traffic crashes.
Reduce the highway death rate by one-third.
STRATEGIC HIGHWAY SAFETY PLAN
Added Benefit to Society
Drive down
the costs to society
of motor vehicle
crashes.
STRATEGIC HIGHWAY SAFETY PLAN
Total economic cost of
roadway crashes: $230
billion a year.
How Can We Do It?
 Involve all agencies with a safety mission
Engineers, law enforcement, EMS,
licensing, judiciary, behavioral
 Establish Integrated
Safety Management Process
 Identify Significant
Safety Problems
Focus on road users, highway, vehicle,
environment, and management system
 Launch Coordinated Attack on Problems
STRATEGIC HIGHWAY SAFETY PLAN
Driving Down Fatalities
TOOLS FOR LIFE
THE PLAN
Cost-effective
Proven Strategies
Innovation
STRATEGIC HIGHWAY SAFETY PLAN
Strategic Highway Safety Plan
Created with input
from a wide range of
public and private
sector national safety
experts in driver,
vehicle and highway
issues.
STRATEGIC HIGHWAY SAFETY PLAN
Contributors to the
Strategic Plan

States and Counties

American Association of Retired
Persons

Mothers Against Drunk Driving

National Safety Council

American Traffic Safety Services Assn.

Insurance Institute for Highway
Safety

Transportation Research Board

Bicycle Federation of America

American Association of State
Highway and Transportation Officials

General Motors Corp.
American Automobile Association
Traffic Safety Foundation

Academia



Governors Highway Safety Association
American Road and Transportation
Builders Association
Insurance Industry

American Trucking Associations

Roadway Safety Foundation

American Association of Motor Vehicle
Administrators


Railroad Industry

National Transportation Safety Board

Private Sector Consultants

U.S. Department of Transportation
STRATEGIC HIGHWAY SAFETY PLAN
AASHTO
Strategic Highway Safety Plan
A Comprehensive Plan to Substantially
Reduce Vehicle-Related Fatalities and
Injuries on the Nations Highways
STRATEGIC HIGHWAY SAFETY PLAN
What the Plan Focuses On
A comprehensive approach:






Drivers
Other Users
Vehicles
Highways
Emergency Medical Services
Management
STRATEGIC HIGHWAY SAFETY PLAN
Emphasis Areas & Strategies

22 key emphasis areas and more than
90 strategies, with emphasis on
 Existing, cost-effective strategies
 Enhancements to improve effectiveness of existing
programs
 Major and emerging safety categories

Integration of effort is the key
STRATEGIC HIGHWAY SAFETY PLAN
DRIVERS
8 Emphasis Areas


Instituting GDL for young
drivers
Ensuring drivers are fully
licensed and competent

Sustaining proficiency in
older drivers

Curbing aggressive driving
STRATEGIC HIGHWAY SAFETY PLAN

Reducing impaired driving

Increasing driver safety
awareness

Increasing safety belt use
and improving
air bag effectiveness

Keeping drivers alert
Special USERS
2 Emphasis areas
Make Walking and Street
Crossing Safer

Ensuring Safer Bicycle
Travel

STRATEGIC HIGHWAY SAFETY PLAN
VEHICLES
3 Emphasis Areas

Improving Motorcycle Safety

Making Truck Travel Safer

Increasing Safety
Enhancements in Vehicles
STRATEGIC HIGHWAY SAFETY PLAN
HIGHWAYS
6 Emphasis Areas
 Reducing vehicle-train collisions

Keeping vehicles on the roadway

Minimizing consequences of leaving the roadway

Improving design and operation of highway
intersections

Reducing head-on and across-median collisions

Designing safer work zones
STRATEGIC HIGHWAY SAFETY PLAN
Emergency Medical Services
1 Emphasis Area

Enhancing emergency medical
capabilities to increase
survivability
STRATEGIC HIGHWAY SAFETY PLAN
Management
2 Emphasis Area
Improving Information and
Decision Support Systems

Creating More Effective Processes
and Safety Management Systems

STRATEGIC HIGHWAY SAFETY PLAN
Moving Toward the Goal
Significantly reducing crashes, deaths, injuries,
and lost resources will require:

Deployment of existing and innovative
cost-effective strategies

Comprehensive, team-based approach

New emphasis on emerging safety categories

A process for integrating and coordinating efforts
STRATEGIC HIGHWAY SAFETY PLAN
Driving Down Fatalities
TOOLS FOR LIFE
THE PROCESS
Comprehensive Approach to
Maximize Road Safety
STRATEGIC HIGHWAY SAFETY PLAN
Integrated Safety Management Process

Comprehensive approach

Cuts across
organizational boundaries

Promotes cooperation

Guides plan development

Establish a death reduction goal
STRATEGIC HIGHWAY SAFETY PLAN
Developing a Comprehensive Plan
Four hallmarks of a Comprehensive Highway
Safety Plan:

Data driven

Collaborative

Comprehensive

Management
NCHRP Report 501
is an excellent guide
STRATEGIC HIGHWAY SAFETY PLAN
Working Together Is Key
Advantages of an Integrated
Safety Management Process
 New insights—relationships
between organizations and
functions

Helps participants see the
“bigger picture”

Pooled resources

Sheds light on inefficiencies

Interaction between participants
STRATEGIC HIGHWAY SAFETY PLAN
Driving Down Fatalities
TOOLS FOR LIFE
IMPLEMENTATION
GUIDES
Blueprints for a Safer Future
STRATEGIC HIGHWAY SAFETY PLAN
NCHRP Report 500 Series
 Developed by recognized safety
experts.
Latest research and demonstration
results.

Identifies strategies to address
problem areas.

Provide process for implementing
guides

STRATEGIC HIGHWAY SAFETY PLAN
17 Emphasis Area Guides
Now Available

Run-Off-Road

Head-On


Trees in Hazardous
Locations
Unsignalized
Intersections
STRATEGIC HIGHWAY SAFETY PLAN

Unlicensed Driver
Suspended/Revoked

Aggressive Driving

Horizontal Curves

Utility Poles
17 Emphasis Area Guides
Now Available

Older Drivers

Pedestrians

Seat Belt Use

Signalized
Intersections

Heavy Trucks
STRATEGIC HIGHWAY SAFETY PLAN

Alcohol Impaired
Drivers

Work Zones

Rural Emergency
Management
Services

Distracted/Fatigued
Drivers
Scheduled for Late 2006
Early 2007

Motorcyclists

Head-on Crashes on Freeways

Young Drivers

Bicyclists

Speed

Data
STRATEGIC HIGHWAY SAFETY PLAN
Strategic Highway Safety Plan
TOOLS FOR LIFE
THE
SELF ASSESSMENT
TOOL
STRATEGIC HIGHWAY SAFETY PLAN
Self Assessment Tool

Determine level
of implementation of SHSP

Flexible, adaptable to different
types of agencies

Quick, easy, inexpensive

Promotes cooperative
assessment of problems

Helps agencies judge how to
focus or re-direct safety activities
STRATEGIC HIGHWAY SAFETY PLAN
What Difference Will It Make?
Widespread implementation of the Strategic
Highway Safety Plan can result in:
 9,000 fewer deaths
each year

More than 300,000
fewer serious injuries

$20 billion or more
savings in societal
costs of crashes
STRATEGIC HIGHWAY SAFETY PLAN
Achieving ‘1.0’…
What It Will Take?

Stretching our effort.

A new way of going about our business.
Dramatic cultural changes in 4 areas:
 How we approach the problem
 How we use available resources
 How innovative we allow ourselves to be
 How well we field a safety “team”
STRATEGIC HIGHWAY SAFETY PLAN
What Approach is Needed?

Focus on reducing fatalities and serious injuries

Evidence-based deployment of strategies

System improvements

Keying on cost effective improvements
STRATEGIC HIGHWAY SAFETY PLAN
Focusing on High Payoff
Strategies

Core

Desirable
 Lane Departures
 Pedestrian Safety
 Intersections
 Older Drivers
 Safety Belt Use
 Trucks
 Alcohol
 Bicyclist
 Speed Enforcement
 Repeat Offenders
 Young Driver
 Rural EMS
STRATEGIC HIGHWAY SAFETY PLAN
To Sum It Up…
What we need to:
Develop and implement comprehensive, performancebased plans


Identify and work toward fatality reduction goal

Address both state and local road problems
Deploy low-cost, targeted, systematic and cost-effective
strategies


Make use of innovative solutions and strategies

Work with local officials and planning partners

Use Available Resources
STRATEGIC HIGHWAY SAFETY PLAN
Strategic Highway Safety Plan
TOOLS FOR LIFE
Strategic Highway Safety Plan
http://safety.transportation.org
STRATEGIC HIGHWAY SAFETY PLAN