Stories

Stories from the Field

Stories from the Field highlights activities by people on the frontline of improving pedestrian and bicycle safety in California communities.

Berkeley SafeTREC gathered the stories shared here, based on areas where urban planners, designers, engineers, and advocates have implemented safe streets programs, employed best practices, or reported successful outcomes. Explore each Safety Story by clicking the thumbnail images below.

Are you an active transportation practitioner who's been successful prioritizing road safety for people...

Safety Story with Edgar Hernandez

For this installment of Stories from the Field, Berkeley SafeTREC’s Jarah Crowner chatted with Edgar Hernandez, Senior Transportation Planner for Caltrans: California Department of Transportation. Hernandez talks about his inspiration for working in active transportation and why community engagement is vital for success in active transportation programs.

What is your current role?

I am the Active Transportation Planner for Caltrans District 6, serving Madera, Fresno, Tulare, Kings, and Kern...

Safety Story with Ariel Williams-Lewis

For this installment of Stories from the Field, Berkeley SafeTREC’s Kristen Leckie chatted with Ariel Williams-Lewis, Program Manager of the Community and Youth Engagement program at the National Health Foundation (NHF). Williams-Lewis calls out the importance of planning for communities with the individual in mind, not just the active transportation goals planners aim to achieve. Read her Safety Story below!

Do you mind telling us about your organization and then about the role you play within it?

...

Unhoused Traffic Fatalities in San José: Vision Zero Program Manager, Jesse Mintz-Roth

For this installment of Stories from You, we're excited to feature a story from Jesse Mintz-Roth, Vision Zero Program Manager at San José's Department of Transportation (SJ DOT). SJ DOT noticed an increase in unhoused people dying as pedestrians in traffic fatalities, leading to an in-depth data analysis project of...

Safety Story with Colin Parent

For this installment of Stories from the Field, Berkeley SafeTREC’s Lisa Peterson chatted with Colin Parent, Executive Director, at Circulate San Diego and Councilmember for the City of La Mesa, California. Parent discusses public policy strategies for advancing safer streets, the importance of working with the press and decision makers, and the role of empathy in getting to zero traffic deaths and injuries. Read his Safety Story below!...

Explore new Stories from the Field with Circulate San Diego, Ecology Action & the City of Richmond!

September 22, 2021
New Safety Stories highlight how communities are prioritizing action transportation safety

Explore our new installments in the Stories From the Field Series to learn how people on the frontline are improving road safety for people who walk, bike and roll in their communities! In the three latest Safety Stories, the SafeTREC team talked with Patrick Phelan with the City of Richmond, Colin Parent of Circulate San Diego, and Amelia Conlen with Ecology Action. Click on the links below to learn...

Explore our new Safety Story with California Walks

July 28, 2023

Explore our newest installment in the Stories From the Field Series to learn how people on the frontline are improving road safety for people who walk, bike and roll in their communities! Check out the latest Safety Story where the SafeTREC team talked with Karen Rodriguez with California Walks to discuss her inspiration for working in active transportation and lessons gained from a recent...

The Best Complete Streets Policies 2023 Report has arrived!

June 30, 2023

Smart Growth America released their long-awaited Best Completed Streets Policies Report. This new report evaluates and ranks the 157 Complete Streets policies adopted in the U.S. from 2019 to 2022; highlighting national trends and spotlighting the strongest policies and offering real-world examples of how these policies get passed. Also, it spotlights...

Webinar: "I have the data, now what?" A closer look at data collection, collaboration, and planning between community and governmental agencies

May 9, 2022
"I have the data, now what?" A closer look at data collection, collaboration, and planning between community and governmental agencies

UC Berkeley SafeTREC hosted a webinar on May 17, "I have the data, now what?" as part of the Street Story program. ...

Dave's Safety Story: Lessons from Oakland

For this installment of Stories from the Field, SafeTREC Policy and Program Analyst, Ali von Klan, sat down with Dave Campbell, Bike East Bay's Advocacy Director. Campbell talks about his decades-long of advocacy work promoting bicycling for transportation in the Bay Area and the importance of trust, relationship-building, and maintaining expectations during the planning and design process.

Interview condensed for length and clarity.

AVK: Let’s start by having you describe Bike East Bay and your role within it.

DC:...