There is an increasing amount of big data available to track and understand vehicle speeds, near-miss indicators, hard-braking and other similar metrics often associated with road safety performance. Embrace big data in your safety work! Through strategic, right-sized investment, it can successfully complements traditional data sources to help you assess the effectiveness of safety improvements more quickly and further justify investments in systemic and other proactive safety improvements.

Safe vehicles are a critical element of a Safe System, but it can feel hard to influence vehicle safety when so much about vehicle design and operation is regulated at the federal or state level. Don’t give up, though, because there are important ways for communities to encourage safe vehicles too. Maybe your agency has influence over vehicle licensing fees, allowing you to make it more expensive to own and operate heavier vehicles. Maybe your agency manages its own vehicle fleet, allowing you to build in the latest safety technologies. Or maybe your community is ready to contribute to advocacy efforts at the state or federal level. Whether it’s through AV readiness planning, curbside management efforts, Safe Routes to School mode shift priorities, or truck route designations, local communities have a role to play in progress towards safe vehicles.