Safe System Weekly | November 15, 2024
by Russ Martin
Welcome to this week’s edition! Monday was Veteran’s Day, and I hope we can also remember that the Armed Services have been a powerful part of the roadway safety community. Some soldiers enter service without a driving license and are taught on the job. Domestic military installations have been partners on safer driving on- and off-base. There are also programs for soldiers who return to civilian life and sometimes have to adjust to driving with prosthetics and other adaptive equipment. Minor dependents stationed overseas also still have to navigate the learning-to-drive process. I hope we are keeping these partners in mind for future roadway safety opportunities.
FHWA New Rules on Work Zone Safety Policy
For the first time in 20 years, the Federal Highway Administration has revised its requirements for work zone safety and temporary traffic control. The requirements include the use of work zone safety performance measures, new procedures for work zone programmatic reviews, and requires the use of temporary traffic control devices.
NHTSA Publishes FFY 2024 State Grant Determinations
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has announced which states were awarded traffic safety grants for this fiscal year, which were not awarded and why.
What the 2024 Election Could Mean for Transportation Policy
In the coming years, Congress will negotiate funding for transportation spending, including the Safe Streets and Roads for All Grant Program and all of the new programs under the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. A key part of this will be addressing the solvency of the Highway Trust Fund.
FMCSA’s Administrator Turnover Troubles Have Been Bipartisan
This article looks back on the last eight years which have seen seven administrators at the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration.
💡 This author would also point out that NHTSA has lacked a Senate-confirmed Administrator for much of the same time period.
GDOT Fixes “Frankensteined” Guardrails
After an extensive statewide investigation, the Georgia Department of Transportation has addressed more than 1,400 guardrails that were installed with mismatched parts, weakening their crash mitigation effectiveness.
💡 This has been a legacy installation issue that many State DOTs have begun addressing in recent years.
Waymo Expands to L.A., Touts Naturalistic Driving Data Set
Starting this week, Waymo opened its service to a wide swath of Los Angeles County. The company is also promoting the creation of a new, large naturalistic driving dataset to study vulnerable road user safety. Meanwhile, concerns about the impacts of autonomous vehicles, particularly of transportation patterns, continue. The California Public Utility Commission also updated its data reporting requirements for crashes, incidents, and stoppages.
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Michigan Set To Approve Work Zone Speed Cameras
The Michigan Legislature has sent a bill to Governor Gretchen Whitmer that would allow speed safety cameras to be deployed to protect roadside workers.
Bicycle Alert Detection to be Standard in GM Vehicles
Starting in 2025, most new GM vehicles will have radar- and camera-based detection to identify bicyclists all around the vehicle and in blind spots and to prevent bicycle “dooring.” There is concern that drivers would have the ability to deactivate the warnings.
Ohio Rail Development Commission Secures $36 million in FRA Grants
In addition to improving rail operations, this grant funding will also be used to improve rail crossings and mitigate highway train blockage, which not only causes congestion but impedes EMS response.
CS Openings
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That’s all for this week. Thanks for reading!
Send me any updates you'd like me to include next week at rmartin@camsys.com or message me on LinkedIn.