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Road to Zero Monthly News

March 27, 2024

Distracted Driving Awareness Month

Each April, the National Safety Council, USDOT and others observe Distracted Driving Awareness Month to bring attention to the dangers of distracted driving and share simple steps drivers can take to avoid it. This year, NSC is offering a variety of free resources to help you keep yourself and others safe on the road, including:

You can also register for this Distracted Driving Awareness Month webinar, hosted in partnership with the Road to Zero Coalition and featuring a panel of experts. Thousands of people are killed and hundreds of thousands more are seriously injured in distracted driving crashes each year. Join NSC in this year’s observance to help protect your workforce on and off the job, reinforce your commitment to safety in your community, and help create safer roads for us all. Visit nsc.org/JustDrive to get started.

Register: 2024 RTZ Coalition Annual Meeting

Don’t forget to register to join us in person or online for the 2024 Road to Zero annual meeting! Taking place on Monday, May 13, in Washington, D.C., this is an excellent opportunity to network with other Coalition members, hear the latest from our working groups and get insights into our plans for the rest of 2024. This event is free and open to all, register now to secure your spot!

Share Your Story in Washington, D. C.

Coinciding with our 2024 annual meeting, there’s still time to RSVP for our Capitol Hill Roadway Safety Advocacy Days. This is an incredible opportunity to share your story with federal policymakers and help them understand the importance of prioritizing road safety policies to save lives. RSVP here to attend alongside Coalition members and partners from NSC, Families for Safe Streets and Stop Distractions.

2024 Progress Report on National Roadway Safety Strategy

Through the National Roadway Safety Strategy (NRSS), USDOT committed in January 2022 to take urgent action to save lives on our roadways. This 2024 Progress Report, released last month, provides a concise update on USDOT’s efforts, details the accomplishments of the NRSS in 2023, and identifies new commitments to actions in 2024 and beyond. Learn more about this progress and the NRSS here

View Upcoming Funding Opportunities

Earlier this month, USDOT’s Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) announced more than $180 million in grants to promote roadway safety. These grants, part of the funding included in the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, are open to state, territorial and tribal organizations, local jurisdictions, academic institutions, and other training programs and entities to promote commercial motor vehicle safety-related activities. The funding opportunities are available through five discretionary grant programs, see the details and apply now.

Applications remain open for $350 million in NHTSA grants for states, territories and tribes to upgrade and standardize data collection systems. This program will enable intrastate data sharing and improve the accuracy, timeliness and accessibility of fatality data, including data about pedestrians, cyclists and other vulnerable road users. The grants are open to all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, Guam, American Samoa, the Northern Mariana Islands, and the Secretary of the Interior, acting on behalf of an Indian tribe. Learn more and apply

See the Latest from Road to Zero Partners

  • Families for Safe Streets, the newest organization on the Road to Zero steering committee, offers a range of supports to crash victims and survivors including this new Story Map, a powerful opportunity to show legislators and other decision makers the human cost of traffic violence beyond the numbers and statistics. Here’s a few upcoming support community events (RSVP for all on their website or email [email protected]):

    – Honor Your/Your Loved One’s Crash Anniversary or Birthday – Held monthly, join today at 7 p.m. ET for March anniversaries and birthdays 
    –  Somatic Movement Therapy Support Gathering for Crash Survivors – 4/4/24 at 7 p.m. ET 
    – Families for Safe Streets Story Map – Fridays in March and April at 4 p.m. ET 
  • VERITY Now Co-Chair Beth Brooke recently joined the Future of Mobility podcast to discuss the need for gender-inclusive vehicle safety standards and how NHTSA can implement them with a simple rule change. Just over a year ago, the Government Accountability Office published a report calling out the limitations of crash test dummies used by NHTSA to improve vehicle safety, showing dummies do not adequately represent the risks faced by women when they get into a car.
  • The 2024 Lifesavers Conference begins early next month in Denver. Check out the full conference schedule, list of exhibitors and make your plan to attend – we look forward to seeing you there!
  • On April 6, GHSA – in partnership with ERSI and Waymo – is offering a free training on automated vehicle technology for emergency responders. Register now for this auxiliary training held in conjunction with the Lifesavers Conference.  
  • Smart Growth America’s Equity Summit kicks off today to help housing, transportation and community development advocates and leaders learn from each other and identify tools to advance racial equity through smart growth. See the agenda and get your tickets to attend this event at the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Library in D.C.
  • Join the Association of Transportation Safety Information Professionals (ATSIP) in San Diego this August for the Traffic Records Forum. Attendees can participate in sessions to learn the latest safety data collection methods and best practices – register now.

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