February 2023 - Upcoming Calendar Events

February 14, 2023

Bicycle sign

Explore our round-up of webinars and events coming up highlighting the latest road safety trends and best practices in planning and designing safe spaces for walking, biking, scooting, and rolling! Have an event you'd like us to share? Please submit your event here.

Also, these opportunities can be found on the event calendar here.

WEBINARS

A View of Sign Designs from the Field: Innovative? Unusual? MUTCD Compliant?

Host:  MCDITE

February 15, 2023 | 9:00 am PT | Register

This presentation will take a look at the range of practices; differences in practice between states, regions, and locales; and highlight some local ideas that are worthy of more widespread adoption. You will come away from this presentation with some new knowledge about provisions in the MUTCD.

For more information about this training, click here.

Exploring the Intersection of Policy and Health - The Role of Perceived Safety on Bicycling Behavior

Host:  Center for Advancing Research in Transportation Emissions, Energy, and Health

February 15, 2023 | 10:00am PT | Register

The Center for Advancing Research in Transportation Emissions, Energy and Health (CARTEEH) is hosting a webinar on Wednesday, February 15, 2023, from 12:00 p.m. – 1:00 p.m. CST on the role that perceived safety has on bicycling behavior. 

CARTEEH’s 2022 Student of the Year, Michelle Duren, will discuss the relationship between local transportation policies and bicycle use. Michelle will share the methods and findings from a series of logistic regression models that were run to assess the extent to which changes in perceived safety mediated the impact of those policies on bicycling behavior.

For more information about this training, click here.

2023 Peer Exchange Series: Safe Routes to Parks

Host: UC Berkeley Safe Transportation Research and Education Center (SafeTREC)

February 15, 2023 | 11:00 am PT | Register

This online session is the second part of the 2023 Peer Exchange Series, and will cover promoting safe and active routes to parks and green spaces in urban and rural neighborhoodsLearn more and register.

About the 2023 Peer Exchange Series:
The 2023 Peer Exchange Series supports communities as they work to implement pedestrian and bicycle transportation safety programming and improvements. All meetings will take place Wednesdays at 11am PT.  We invite participants who were involved in a pedestrian or bicycle safety workshop hosted by SafeTREC and Cal Walks via the Community Pedestrian and Bicycle Safety Training (CPBST) program and the Comunidades Activas y Seguras (CAyS) program in the past few years to join us to share your successes and challenges, and hear about best practices from your peers and colleagues. Download the 2023 Peer Exchange Flyer to learn more about the series.

Public Involvement - Tribal Peer Exchange

Host: FHWA Office of Tribal Transportation

February 15, 2023 | 11:00 am PT | Register

A panel will share their experiences with conducting traditional and/or virtual public involvement, best practices, and lessons learned.

Presenter(s):

  • Misty Klann, Program Planning Specialist, FHWA Office of Tribal Transportation
  • Sharon Ray, Department of Transportation Director, Seneca Nation
  • Anthony Duncan, Tribal Transportation Director, Robinson Rancheria
  • Damascus Francisco, Roads Program Director, Tohono O’odham Nation


Learn more and register.

Strengthening Community Connections Through Bike Infrastructure, Transit Integration, and Local Tourism

Host: APBP

February 15, 2023 | Noon PT | Register

Improving access to multi-modal transit facilities and building public support for such projects through community engagement can have a transformational impact on residents and visitors of all ages. Three North American case studies, including Marshalltown Iowa, Hopkins Minnesota, and Waterloo Region Ontario, show how key destinations in small to medium-sized communities are reinvigorated through thoughtful design of accessible and appealing active transportation corridors.

Fee: $50 members, $85 nonmembers

Learn more and register.

Road Ecology - Safety for Four-Legged Pedestrians

Host:  National Center for Rural Road Safety

February 16, 2023 | 10:00 am PT | Register

Road ecology has made substantial advances over the last few decades. Our knowledge has increased and mitigation measures to reduce the impacts of roads and traffic on wildlife are now widespread and implemented regularly. In many cases, the mitigation measures address human safety by reducing collisions with large mammals and providing safe crossing opportunities for wildlife, and it can even make economic sense to implement these mitigation measures. With funding for wildlife provisions, research, and training recently being added to the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL), let’s dive into a discussion on wildlife-vehicle collision mitigation.

For more information about this training, click here

Improving the After-Dark Pedestrian Environment for Safety and Walkability

Host: ITE

February 16, 2023 | Noon PT | Register

About 75% of U.S. pedestrian fatalities occur after dark, and pedestrian fatalities have been increasing at a much faster rate than other traffic fatalities in recent years. Ensuring that streets are safe and walkable between dusk and dawn is thus critical for truly “complete streets.” However, the importance of after-dark conditions and of street lighting has often been overlooked by transportation professionals.

Effective outdoor lighting can significantly improve safety and other aspects of the nighttime environment (including perceptions of security, comfort, and reassurance). Complementary strategies, such as speed control and specific traffic control devices, are also valuable.

This webinar will equip transportation engineers, planners, and others to plan and design more holistically to address pedestrian safety and comfort in darkness. It will cover: an overview of the topic and key background; problem analysis; the benefits, costs, and potential concerns regarding enhanced lighting and complementary strategies; and funding approaches. It will also cover integrating such measures into complete streets plans and policies.

Fee: members: free, non-members: $79
Learn more and register.

Transportation Safety Culture: Where we are and what it means

Host: Portland State University TREC

February 16, 2023 | Noon PT | Register

Like any healthy professional community, the transportation safety community is not homogenous or without constructive conflict. The increased attention on systems thinking – most commonly known, if not necessarily well understood, under the “Vision Zero” approach – has sparked debate among engineers, planners, academics, public health professionals, advocates, and others about where our attention should be focused to reduce the epidemic of traffic violence. The built environment? Drivers? Engineers and planners? Car culture? What IS car culture? Dr. Goddard brings together her research conducted with colleagues on police crash reporting processes, NHTSA crash investigations, attitudes and effects of the language and framing around crashes, and recent examples of the “systems vs people” debate to recommend some shared definitions, research directions, and questions for practitioners, advocates, and anyone interested in reducing traffic injuries and deaths.

Learn more and register.

Transportation Safety Culture: Where we are and what it means

Host: America Walks

February 16, 2023 | Noon PT | Register

Like any healthy professional community, the transportation safety community is not homogenous or without constructive conflict. The increased attention on systems thinking – most commonly known, if not necessarily well understood, under the “Vision Zero” approach – has sparked debate among engineers, planners, academics, public health professionals, advocates, and others about where our attention should be focused to reduce the epidemic of traffic violence. The built environment? Drivers? Engineers and planners? Car culture? What IS car culture? Dr. Goddard brings together her research conducted with colleagues on police crash reporting processes, NHTSA crash investigations, attitudes and effects of the language and framing around crashes, and recent examples of the “systems vs people” debate to recommend some shared definitions, research directions, and questions for practitioners, advocates, and anyone interested in reducing traffic injuries and deaths.

Learn more and register.

Arrested Mobility with Equitable Cities Charles Brown

Host: Cities for Everyone with Gil

February 21, 2023 | 11:00 am PT | Register

This presentation with Equitable Cities Charles Brown will examine the ways in which our approaches to research, planning, policy, and design can and must be reimagined to achieve greater mobility, health, and safety for Black Americans.

Learn more and register.

Practical Suggestions for Useful Evaluations

Host: Center for Health and Safety Culture (CHSC)

February 22, 2023 | 9:00am PT|Register

The work we do to improve health and safety in our communities can be strengthened through evaluation. Practical evaluation approaches can help us understand what’s working well, what can be improved, and how to make improvement tweaks. Evaluation can be useful without being overly costly or burdensome. Join us for a conversation with practical suggestions for utilizing evaluation in health and safety work.

For more information about this training, click here

Enhancing Digital Accessibility - Sight, Sound, And More

Host: iap2

February 22, 2023 | 11:00am PT|Register

Improving digital usability for people with disabilities is critical for inclusion, and provides a better user experience for everyone. Learn what it looks like to apply an accessibility-first mindset in digital P2. Participants will leave with actionable tips to make accessibility improvements right away.

Learn more and register.

Curbside Management Strategies

Host: Southern California Association of Governments (SCAG), Arcadis IBI Group and Forward-Progress

February 22, 2023 | 11:00am PT|Register

Curb space has recently become a battleground between traditional uses, such as parking, delivery, transit and bike lanes, and new users, such as rideshare, micromobility and e-commerce. Register for this webinar to hear from industry experts on how jurisdictions can transform their curb space and coordinate innovative and sustainable curb management strategies, and learn about digital curb management best practices. 

More information is available at lp.curbiq.io/scag-ty/.  

Peer Influence and the Perceptions of Safety

Host: Collaborative Sciences Center for Road Safety (CSCRS)

February 22, 2023 | 11:30am PT|Register

Policy development and implementation related to traffic safety is inherently connected to the communities that elect policymakers and provide their input on proposed legislation. In past years, traffic safety research has studied how perceptions of safety relate to travel behavior and safety outcomes. Pertaining to this focus area, this study focuses on examining the relationship between an individual's perceptions of safety and those held by their peers using a survey that asked North Carolina residents a myriad of questions concerning transportation. It is anticipated that this study will help inform the development of more effective community engagement and policy formation.

Learn more and register.

Improving Recreational Trail Accessibility with a Volcanic Ash Treatment

Host: National Institute for Transportation and Communities 

February 23, 2023 | 10:00am PT|Register

In 2022, researchers at Oregon Tech resurfaced a pilot section of trail in Klamath Falls, Oregon, using a NITC-developed sustainable paving method. Wheelchair accessibility of recreational trails depends on a variety of conditions, including slope, cross-slope, and surface characteristics. This project focused on improving the firmness and stability of a 0.2-mile section of trail that was otherwise accessible. 

In this webinar, Charles (C.J.) Riley and Ashton Greer of Oregon Tech will describe how to practically use a raw volcanic ash with little processing as a binder for a soil-cement, and how to mobilize small groups to treat a recreational trail with locally-sourced, sustainable materials to improve the trail surface. The webinar will present details of the trail conditions, methodology, and surface characteristics before and after treatment.

For more information and to register, click here.

Fundamentals of Vision Zero Action Planning

Host: Vision Zero Network

February 23, 2023 | 10:00am PT|Register

Join the Vision Zero Network for the first in our webinar series: “Fundamentals of Vision Zero Action Planning.” Whether you’re one of the 450+ U.S. communities awarded a Safe Streets and Roads for All planning grant from the US Dept. of Transportation or you’re aiming to launch a future planning effort or update your existing Vision Zero plan, you’re invited to learn valuable insights and tap into practical resources to help your work be effective in moving the needle toward Vision Zero.

For more information about this training, click here

FUNDING OPPORTUNITIES

Caltrans Division of Local Assistance, Program Funding Opportunities Webinar

Host: Cooperative Training Assistance Program 

February 24, 2023 | Register

The Division of Local Assistance is holding a series of short webinars to provide local public agencies updates of funding opportunities, along with key deadlines for new and existing programs. Presentations provided by Division of Local Assistance Office of Federal Programs and State Programs.

Funding Deadline: 2023 RAISE Grant Program

Host: USDOT

February 28, 2023 

The Rebuilding American Infrastructure with Sustainability and Equity, or RAISE Discretionary Grant program, provides a unique opportunity for the DOT to invest in road, rail, transit and port projects that promise to achieve national objectives. 

The eligibility requirements of RAISE allow project sponsors at the State and local levels to obtain funding for multi-modal, multi-jurisdictional projects that are more difficult to support through traditional DOT programs.  RAISE can provide funding directly to any public entity, including municipalities, counties, port authorities, tribal governments, MPOs, or others in contrast to traditional Federal programs which provide funding to very specific groups of applicants (mostly State DOTs and transit agencies). 

Final Applications must be submitted by 11:59:59 PM E.D.T. on February 28, 2023. Applicants are strongly encouraged to make submissions in advance of the deadline. Late applications will not be accepted.

Learn more about the program, upcoming webinars and how to apply.

TRAININGS

Implementing the Safe System Approach Course

Host:  ITE

January 18 –  March 9

The Implementing the Safe System Approach course is a new certificate-based blending learning course that will provide an in-depth understanding of the Safe System Approach and its application.  The Safe System Approach is a holistic approach to achieving zero transportation-related severe injuries and fatalities.  At its foundation, the Safe System Approach acknowledges that humans make mistakes and are vulnerable to crash impacts.  This approach is a change from traditional safety practice and is based on shared responsibility, redundancy, and proactive action across five elements: Safe Road Users, Safe Vehicles, Safe Roads, Safe Speeds, and Post-Crash Care. The intended audience for the course is transportation planners, engineers, safety data analysts, public health professionals, and other key stakeholders with shared responsibility within the Safe System. 

This course will consist of pre-recorded modules delivered by subject matter experts and four live instructor-led discussion sessions. 

Learn more and register.

Toolbox Tuesdays

Host:  Southern California Association of Governments(SCAG)

Tue, February 21, 1pm – 2pm

Toolbox Tuesdays provide training on a range of practical skills and knowledge for local planning practitioners including training in the use of technology and education for practical approaches to timely issues. All classes and webinars are COMPLIMENTARY for staff of SCAG-member local governments and other SCAG partners in Imperial, Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino and Ventura Counties. Private sector planners, non-profit staff, academics and students are welcome to attend.

Learn more and register.