Continuing the work of building a safer roadway system for all

CSCRS Director Laura Sandt testifying before U.S. Senate subcommittee

CSCRS Director Dr. Laura Sandt testifying before U.S. Senate subcommittee in May 2024.

Earlier this year I had the privilege of providing testimony before the U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation Subcommittee on Surface Transportation, Maritime, Freight, and Ports in a hearing titled “Examining the Roadway Safety Crisis and Highlighting Community Solutions.” The hearing was intended to examine the causes of the roadway safety crisis, including unique risks to pedestrians, bicyclists, and motorcyclists, and how Congress can support a holistic approach to roadway safety.

During my testimony I said, “We need a safer system in the U.S., one in which people can make mistakes, and be human, and still make it home on our roads. A focus on addressing kinetic energy as the root cause of roadway fatalities offers tremendous promise for creating a transportation system that is safe for people of all ages and abilities. University researchers are well-positioned to support this work in collaboration with the many partners dedicated to community safety and well-being.”

Providing this testimony seemed like a fitting thing to do as CSCRS completes its grant as a University Transportation Center funded under the Fast Act. Since 2016 our team has been doing the very work I testified about: Applying public health principles and systems science in our work to equip current and future transportation professionals and stakeholders with more effective tools to solve complex safety challenges. This multidisciplinary work advances Safe Systems concepts — such as accounting for human vulnerabilities and human behavior to proactively limit the chance of fatal injury — through research, education, workforce development, and technology transfer.

Our myriad accomplishments and impacts on the field of practice over the last several years have been documented extensively in newsletters, progress reports, conferences, and more. In 2022 CSCRS released multimedia materials touting the Center’s successes to date:

 But of course, we didn’t stop then – we kept going by:

Our work advancing the Safe Systems approach to road safety will continue; to connect with our ongoing work, follow our headquarters, the UNC Highway Safety Research Center:  

Also, stay in touch with our CSCRS consortium partners and their work:

We thank you for your interest in and support of the work of CSCRS, and we look forward to continuing to collaborate with you on a safer road system for all!

 

 

 

Laura Sandt, CSCRS Director and HSRC Co-Director

 

 

CSCRS Crossroads newsletters are archived here.