U.S. Department of Transportation
Federal Highway Administration
1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE
Washington, DC 20590
202-366-4000
FHWA's RSPCB Peer-to-Peer Program (P2P) supports and sponsors peer exchanges and workshops hosted by agencies.
Date
October 10-11, 2012
Host
New Jersey Local Technical Assistance Program
Participants
Representatives from:
Connecticut
Maine
Massachusetts
New Hampshire
New Jersey
New York
Rhode Island
Vermont
FHWA Office of Safety FHWA Technology Partnerships Program
U.S. DOT Volpe Center
FHWA's Office of Safety sponsors P2P events.
Learn more
1. Introduction and Background
3. Partnerships – Noteworthy Practices
4. Highway Safety Improvement Program – Noteworthy Practices
This report provides a summary of the proceedings of the Local Road Safety Peer Exchange held in Piscataway, New Jersey October 10th and 11th, 2012. The Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) sponsored the Peer Exchange in coordination with Region 1 Local Technical Assistance Program. The purpose of the Peer Exchange was to facilitate the exchange of information on local road safety and explore opportunities for greater coordination and communication between FHWA, State Departments of Transportation (DOTs), Local Technical Assistance Program Centers (LTAPs) and local officials/practitioners within the States in the region. The Peer Exchange covered four key topics:
Representatives from Region 1 States participated in the event including: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Rhode Island, and Vermont.
The format of the Peer Exchange consisted of expert and peer presentations on state practices, breakout sessions and facilitated roundtable discussions. At the end of the second day, participants met with colleagues in their respective States to develop action plans covering the four key topics discussed. The action plans identified:
A brief description of the peer exchange proceedings is provided below.
The FHWA New Jersey Division Office Safety Specialist welcomed participants to the Peer Exchange and provided an overview of highway safety issues in the State. She emphasized the value of sharing ideas with peers and encouraged everyone present to take advantage of the opportunity to discuss roadway safety issues with colleagues and develop action plans to address those issues.
The FHWA Office of Safety Local and Rural Road Safety (LRRS) Program Manager provided an overview of the workshop event and asked participants to introduce themselves and share their expectations. Expectations included:
The FHWA Office of Safety HSIP Program Manager gave an overview of HSIP, a core Federal-aid program that funds highway safety improvement projects on all public roads, and reviewed changes to the program under Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century (MAP-21). HSIP is a Federally-funded, State-administered program. The purpose of the program is to reduce fatalities and injuries on all public roads. The HSIP program promotes an approach to roadway safety project funding that creates a systematic and repeatable process for identifying projects that target the areas of greatest need and result in defendable decisions. The systemic approach can have the greatest benefits for local rural road and vulnerable road users. Program funding in each State is guided by comprehensive, data-driven, statewide strategic highway safety plans.
To be eligible for HSIP funding, projects must meet certain criteria. An HSIP funded project must:
HSIP MAP-21 Interim Eligibility Guidance is available at https://www.fhwa.dot.gov/map21/guidance/guidehsip.cfm.
There have been several changes to the HSIP program under MAP-21. MAP-21 doubles HSIP funding and increases the flexibility of the use of HSIP funds. MAP-21 removes limits on the use of HSIP for non-highway projects. It explicitly permits the use of HSIP funds on retro-reflectivity projects and prohibits the use of HSIP for automated enforcement. FHWA provides technical assistance, training and a variety of resources to support State administration of the HSIP program including: National Highway Institute (NHI) courses, peer exchanges on noteworthy practices, and HSIP program assessments.
The LTAP/Tribal Technical Assistance Program (TTAP) Program Manager from the FHWA Office of Technology Services presented an overview of the activities and accomplishments of LTAP/TTAP Centers across the country. There are LTAP Centers in each State as well as Puerto Rico. In addition, there are seven TTAPs. LTAP/TTAPs provide technical assistance to local agencies in four general areas: safety, workforce development, worker safety, and infrastructure management. The LTAP/TTAP program has a strategic plan and tracks performance data aligned with the program's strategic goals. FHWA works closely with the National LTAP Association (NLTAPA) to conduct outreach and identify opportunities for partnership.
The national LTAP/TTAP program has identified a number of opportunities for LTAP/TTAPs to assist local officials in meeting roadway safety needs. Those opportunities include:
The FHWA Office of Safety LRRS Program Manager gave an overview of transportation safety planning. Transportation Safety Planning is a comprehensive, system-wide, multimodal, proactive process that improves the integration of safety into surface transportation decision planning. Transportation planners should consider how SHSPs can be integrated with other State and regional transportation plans to encourage safety elements in all comprehensive transportation planning. In turn, SHSPs should integrate different kinds of roadway safety strategies including consideration of engineering, enforcement, education and emergency service strategies. All transportation plans should set measurable goals and objectives that are connected to actions and easily understood and communicated.
FHWA has developed a guidebook, “Transportation Planner's Safety Desk Reference,” that describes how safety fits into the planning process and how safety can be integrated from the earliest stages of goal setting and performance measure development to achieve measurable results.
The FHWA Office of Safety LRRS Program Manager facilitated a discussion about strategies to encourage local involvement in State safety planning and programs. Participants noted a number of different strategies including:
The FHWA Office of Safety LRRS Program Manager asked participants how FHWA can best support local needs. Responses included:
Representatives from each state presented an overview of their respective state's local road safety issues, highlighting challenges and state practices associated with safety data, management of the Highway Safety Improvement Program, and local involvement in the SHSP. Examples of noteworthy practices highlighted by participants included:
Participants then heard from select peers regarding strategies to improve local involvement in strategic highway safety planning activities. These presentations were followed by break-out group discussions on challenges and opportunities for engaging locals in the SHSP planning process.
Delaware Valley Regional Safety Program: Transportation Safety Action Plan – MPO Perspective
Each year in the Delaware Valley region (eastern Pennsylvania, southwestern New Jersey, and northern Delaware), approximately 377 people die in crashes, 45,000 are injured and there are approximately 85,000 reported crashes. DVRPC staffs the Regional Safety Task Force (RSTF) which meets quarterly and guides the development of the Transportation Safety Action Plan. The Transportation Safety Action Plan began with an analysis of the 22 emphasis areas identified in the National Strategic Highway Safety Plan. Of those emphasis areas, just seven are contributing factors to 95 percent of the region's fatalities. They are:
For each emphasis area the plan explains the national and regional context, identifies existing programs in the region, recommends strategies and actions, and lists resources available on the topic. Each meeting of the RSTF is focused on one emphasis area and includes refining a set of actions and reporting back on progress. Upon completing the series of meetings on emphasis areas in June 2013, DVRPC plans to evaluate the defined performance measures and the plan development and implementation process and then begin data analysis for the next plan.
Connecticut Strategic Highway Safety Plan – LTAP Perspective
The Connecticut LTAP was not included in the initial 2006 SHSP development process, but other local agencies were involved. Upon completion of the SHSP, LTAP became involved in the implementation workgroups for different focus areas including:
The Connecticut LTAP's connection to DOT has traditionally been in the area of research. Connecticut LTAP is working with the DOT to find ways to assist with RSAs, data analysis and local outreach. The LTAP is also working with the Connecticut Safety Research Center to develop web-based tools for mapping and analysis of crash data.
Vermont – State DOT Perspective
Over 50 percent of major crashes in Vermont are on rural roads under local jurisdiction. Vermont has been successful at using the High Risk Rural Road Program (HRRRP) to fund projects at the local level. To facilitate the development of Federally-funded projects on local roads, the Vermont Agency of Transportation (VTrans) assists local governments in administering grants and implementing the projects. Safety stakeholders in Vermont have formed the Vermont Highway Safety Alliance to improve the flow of information to the local level. VTrans has worked with the regional planning commissions in Vermont to pilot Regional Highway Safety Forums. The forums are designed to engage local safety stakeholders in the safety planning process and to educate them about available roadway safety resources.
Table 1 summarizes the result of facilitated discussions on the challenges of local agency involvement in the SHSP process, strategies to address challenges and priorities.
Table 1. Local Involvement in Safety Planning: Challenges and Strategies
Challenges | Strategies |
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|
|
The peer discussion topic focused on interagency collaboration and coordination. Participants discussed ways to improve communication and enhance cooperation among local and State agencies. Participants identified potential partners that could assist in addressing local road safety issues and discussed challenges and potentially effective strategies associated with interagency collaboration. That discussion is summarized in Table 2.
Table 2. Collaboration with Local Agencies: Challenges and Noteworthy Practices
Potential Partners | Challenges | Strategies |
---|---|---|
|
|
|
Participants heard from select peers regarding strategies to improve local involvement in the Highway Safety Improvement Program. These presentations were followed by a break-out group discussion highlighting challenges and opportunities to improve safety on local roads using HSIP funding. States administer HSIP funding in different ways. Some States, like Massachusetts and New York, set aside funding for MPOs and/or local road projects, others, like Rhode Island, New Hampshire and Rhode Island, allocate funding based on an analysis of statewide priority safety needs.
Capitol Region Council of Governments
The Capitol Region Council of Government (CRGG) is an MPO representing 30 municipalities including Hartford in North Central Connecticut. It has a full-time staff eight people. Staffs from CRCG participate in several SHSP action planning committees including the Traffic Records and Roadway Departure committees. They also administer the local road accident reduction program for their region which is funded through the HSIP and provides approximately $500,000 per year for safety projects to local governments. They conduct corridor studies and provide technical assistance, education, and training to local officials.
New Hampshire Strategic Highway Safety Plan
New Hampshire has embraced a campaign called Driving Towards Zero (DTZ) that was developed by marketing professionals and is currently funded through HSIP flex funds. The DTZ campaign uses a variety of marketing media including social media, radio, live events, and online ads and videos to target safety messages to New Hampshire drivers. New Hampshire completed its first SHSP in 2007, which set a goal reducing fatalities to less than 100 per year. This goal was achieved in 2011. New Hampshire used a variety of strategies to achieve this auction including: systemic treatments, policy changes and cultural changes. New Hampshire has been using the SafetyAnalyst tool to screen the transportation network, diagnose problems, select and evaluate countermeasures, and prioritize projects.
Table 3 summarizes the result of facilitated discussions on the challenges of local agency involvement in the HSIP process, strategies to address challenges and priorities.
Table 3. Local Agency Involvement in the HSIP: Challenges and Noteworthy Practices
Challenges | Noteworthy Practices |
---|---|
|
|
Each State group was tasked with developing an overall Action Plan outlining strategies to improve their local road safety program, resources to be employed in the implementation of identified strategies, and a champion to assist in moving forward. Representatives from each State reported out to the group the results of their action planning sessions.
Key actions included:
In their evaluations, participants found the most valuable takeaways from the workshop were learning about State strategies for marketing and outreach to the public and strategies for coordination with local partners. They thought the workshop would have been improved if more local officials had been able to attend and they wanted to learn more about MAP-21 requirements. They appreciated learning from other States and having an opportunity to network with colleagues and create action plans with others from their State. Many participants planned to implement the new ideas they learned at the peer exchange in their own States. Most importantly, participants were able to work together across agencies to develop action plans for their respective States.
FHWA/Volpe | |
---|---|
Rosemarie Anderson Transportation Specialist FHWA Office of Safety Business Phone Number: 202-366-5007 Business Email: Rosemarie.Anderson@dot.gov |
Jacinda Russell Safety & Operations Engineer FHWA - RI Division Business Phone Number: 401-528-4551 Business Email: Jacinda.Russell@dot.gov |
Aaron Jette Community Planner Volpe/US DOT Business Phone Number: 617-494-2335 Business Email: Aaron.Jette@dot.gov |
Karen Scurry Transportation Specialist FHWA Office of Safety Business Phone Number: 609-637-4207 Business Email: Karen.Scurry@dot.gov |
Brian Lawrence Safety & Projects Engineer FHWA Business Phone Number: 207-512-4920 Business Email: Brian.Lawrence@dot.gov |
Caroline Trueman Safety Engineer FHWA Business Phone Number: 609-637-4234 Business Email: Caroline.Trueman@dot.gov |
John McFadden FHWA Resource Center Business Phone Number: 202-493-3371 Business Email: John.Mcfadden@dot.gov |
Robert Turner Safety/Area Engineer FHWA - CT Division Business Phone Number: 860-494-7563 Business Email: Robert.w.Turner@dot.gov |
Jay Monty Transportation Planner Volpe/US DOT Business Phone Number: 617-494-3952 Business Email: Joseph.Monty.ctr@dot.gov |
Jeffrey Zaharewicz LTAP/TTAP Program Manager FHWA/Technology Partnership Programs Business Phone Number: 703-235-0991 Business Email: Jeffrey.Zaharewicz@dot.gov |
Connecticut | |
Joseph Ouellette State Safety Engineer Connecticut Department of Transportation Business Phone Number: 860-594-2721 Business Email: joseph.ouellette@ct.gov |
Donna Shea Director CT LTAP Business Phone Number: 860-486-0377 Business Email: shea@engr.uconn.edu |
Jennifer Carrier Director of Transportation Planning Capitol Region Council of Governments Business Phone Number: 860-522-2217 x212 Business Email: jcarrier@crcog.org |
|
Maine | Massachusetts |
Paul Niehoff Senior Transportation Planner PACTS Business Phone Number: 207-409-9248 Business Email: wpniehoff@gmail.com |
Lisa Schletzbaum Traffic Safety Engineer MassDOT Highway Division Business Phone Number: 857-368-9634 Business Email: Lisa.Schletzbaum@state.ma.us |
New Hampshire | |
Julie Chizmas Transportation Planner Nashua Regional Planning Commission Business Phone Number: 603-424-2240 Business Email: juliec@nashuarpc.org |
Stuart Thompson State Highway Safety Engineer New Hampshire DOT Business Phone Number: 603-271-1407 Business Email: gthompson@dot.state.nh.us |
Beth Hamilton Training Program Manager Technology Transfer Center (NH LTAP) Business Phone Number: 603-862-1362 Business Email: e.hamilton@unh.edu |
|
New Jersey | |
William Day Manager, Transportation Data and Safety NJDOT Business Phone Number: 609-530-3474 Business Email: william.day@dot.state.nj.us |
Janet Leli Director NJ LTAP Business Phone Number: 848-445-2906 Business Email: jleli@rci.rutgers.edu |
George Fallat Traffic Engineer Mercer County Business Phone Number: 609-989-6642 Business Email: gfallat@mercercounty.org |
Jennifer Marandino Team Leader - Capital Programming & Safety SJTPO Business Phone Number: 856-794-1941 Business Email: jmarandino@sjtpo.org |
Sascha Frimpong Manager NJTPA Business Phone Number: 973-639-8422 Business Email: sfrimpong@njtpa.org |
Christine Mittman Project Manager NJTPA Business Phone Number: 973-639-8448 Business Email: cmittman@njtpa.org |
Lois Goldman Director, Regional Planning NJTPA Business Phone Number: 973-639-8413 Business Email: lgoldman@njtpa.org |
Kevin Murphy Principal Transportation Planner DVRPC Business Phone Number: 215-238-2864 Business Email: kmurphy@dvrpc.org |
Andy Kaplan Senior Transportation Safety Engineer Transportation Safety Resource Center at Rutgers CAIT Business Phone Number: 609-213-6252 Business Email: Andy.Kaplan@rutgers.edu |
|
New York | |
Sandra Misiewicz Senior Transportation Planner II Capital District Transportation Committee Business Phone Number: 518-458-2161 Business Email: smisiewicz@cdtcmpo.org |
|
Rhode Island | |
Sean Raymond Senior Civil Engineer Rhode Island DOT Business Phone Number: 401-222-2694 x4204 Business Email: sraymond@dot.ri.gov |
Peter Pavao Safety and Operations Engineer VHB/RIDOT Business Phone Number: 401-742-4824 Business Email: ppavao@vhb.com |
Vermont | |
Amy Gamble Traffic Operations Engineer VT Agency of Transportation Business Phone Number: 802-828-1055 Business Email: amy.gamble@state.vt.us |
Rita Seto Senior Planner, AICP Two Rivers-Ottauquechee Regional Commission Business Phone Number: 802-457-3188 Business Email: rseto@trorc.org |
Piscataway, NJ
October 10 and 11, 2012
Wednesday, October 10 | |
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8:00 a.m. | Welcoming Remarks Workshop Overview |
8:30 a.m. | Participant Introductions |
9:00 a.m. | Presentations
|
10:00 a.m. | Break |
10:15 a.m. | Facilitated Roundtable Discussion Opportunities for LTAP and MPO Involvement in State Safety Program |
10:45 a.m. | State Presentations Brief presentation by each state on local safety efforts in data collection and analysis, SHSP, HSIP |
12:00 p.m. | Lunch |
12:45 p.m. | State Presentations Brief presentation by each state on local safety efforts in data collection and analysis, SHSP, HSIP |
1:30 p.m. | Facilitated Roundtable Discussion Noteworthy practices from the state presentations |
2:15 p.m. | Break |
2:30 p.m. | Presentations - Strategic Highway Safety Plans (including data analysis) Regional and Local Agency involvement in the State SHSP process
|
3:30 p.m. | Breakout Groups - SHSP and Local Involvement Challenges
|
4:15 p.m. | Report Back |
4:45 p.m. | Wrap Up |
Thursday, October 11 | |
---|---|
8:00 a.m. | Recap of Day 1 |
8:30 a.m. | Facilitated Roundtable Discussion - Partnerships
|
9:15 a.m. | Presentations - HSIP (including data analysis)
|
10:15 a.m. | Break |
10:30 a.m. | Breakout Groups - HSIP Project Selection and Implementation
|
11:15 a.m. | Report Back |
11:45 a.m. | Lunch |
12:30 p.m. | Lessons Learned - Action Plans |
2:00 p.m. | Report Back |
2:45 p.m. | Wrap Up (Next Steps), Adjourn |