Pedestrians and Cyclists: Better Information to States and Enhanced Performance Management Could Help DOT Improve Safety
Over 7,000 pedestrians and cyclists died in crashes with motor vehicles in the U.S. in 2019.
Reducing crash risk can involve changing behaviors. Some risks are well understood, like the danger of high driving speeds. Less is known about how other behaviors, like pedestrian distraction, affect crash risk.
States can take on projects like media campaigns to encourage safer behavior among drivers, pedestrians, and cyclists. The Department of Transportation offers information on project options, but few are demonstrated to be effective. We recommended DOT analyze states' projects and share results to improve project effectiveness.
What GAO Found
The behavior of drivers, pedestrians, and cyclists—including driving speed, impairment due to alcohol or drug use, and distracted driving—affect pedestrian and cyclist safety. Some aspects of these road users' behaviors are well understood. For example, higher driving speeds are linked to increased crash risk and severity. In 2019, over 80 percent of pedestrian and cyclist fatalities occurred where speed limits were 35 miles per hour or higher, according to GAO's analysis of Department of Transportation (DOT) data. Other aspects of road users' behaviors are less understood. For example, there is little research on how pedestrian and cyclist impairment affects crash risk, in part because impairment research has focused on drivers. DOT has several efforts under way to improve knowledge of these behavioral aspects of highway safety.
DOT's National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) provides grants and other support to help states implement projects, or countermeasures, to encourage safer behaviors. While NHTSA's Countermeasures That Work guide has useful information on a range of pedestrian and cyclist safety countermeasures, only 3 of 26 countermeasures were demonstrated to be effective (see figure). NHTSA has worked to advance research and monitor efforts to improve safety on a state-by-state basis, but has not analyzed information on states' use of countermeasures more broadly, such as by evaluating available information to identify national trends. Taking this step and sharing the results with states could help NHTSA and states identify promising efforts for study and advance knowledge of countermeasures' effectiveness.
Countermeasures Demonstrated to Be Effective in Improving Pedestrian and Cyclist Safety in the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's Guide
DOT has not fully incorporated performance management practices into its pedestrian and cyclist safety efforts. These practices call for agencies to define goals and measure performance. DOT has established an overall departmental goal and an associated performance measure for pedestrian and cyclist safety. However, the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) within DOT and NHTSA have not established performance measures to monitor their efforts to achieve DOT's pedestrian and cyclist safety goal. For example, DOT released a pedestrian safety plan in 2020 that lists 90 activities of FHWA and NHTSA but no performance measures to assess their progress. Performance measures at the FHWA and NHTSA level could help DOT understand how its different efforts are contributing to safety improvements, identify shortcomings, and make adjustments as warranted.
Why GAO Did This Study
In 2019, over 7,000 pedestrians and cyclists—about 20 per day—died in collisions with motor vehicles in the United States, up from about 4,800 in 2009. Road users' behaviors can affect pedestrian and cyclist safety, along with other factors like vehicle and road design. NHTSA provides states with over $500 million annually to address the behavioral aspects of safety.
GAO was asked to review pedestrian and cyclist safety and road users' behaviors. This report examines: (1) what is known about how road users' behaviors affect pedestrian and cyclist safety; (2) the extent to which NHTSA's countermeasure guide provides information to help states select effective projects; and (3) the extent to which DOT has used key performance management practices to help ensure activities are improving safety. GAO analyzed pedestrian and cyclist fatality data, state safety plans, and relevant literature; interviewed researchers and officials from states selected based on recent fatality trends; and compared relevant DOT strategic plans and practices to standards for effective performance management.
Recommendations
GAO recommends that (1) NHTSA collect, analyze, and share information on states' pedestrian and cyclist safety behavioral countermeasures; and (2,3) FHWA and NHTSA develop and use performance measures to monitor pedestrian and cyclist safety efforts. DOT concurred with the first recommendation and partially concurred with the others. GAO believes DOT should fully implement all three recommendations.
Recommendations for Executive Action
| Agency Affected | Recommendation | Status |
|---|---|---|
| National Highway Traffic Safety Administration | The NHTSA Administrator should take steps to collect information on the range of countermeasures implemented by states and analyze that information to help advance what is known about countermeasures' effectiveness and then share results with states. (Recommendation 1) |
In January 2023, DOT stated that NHTSA is conducting a detailed review of states' highway safety plans to identify the range and extent of pedestrian and bicyclist countermeasures implemented during a year. According to NHTSA officials, they are in the process of analyzing countermeasure effectiveness, and noted that Innovative countermeasures that have been evaluated will be included in the next edition of Countermeasures That Work. The officials stated that the most recent update to Countermeasures That Work is under development and is expected to be published by December 31, 2023. We will continue to monitor NHTSA's efforts to address this recommendation.
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| National Highway Traffic Safety Administration | The NHTSA Administrator should more fully use performance management practices to guide its pedestrian and cyclist safety activities, such as (1) by developing performance measures for NHTSA and the program offices responsible for implementing pedestrian and cyclist safety activities to demonstrate how these activities contribute to safety goals, and (2) by using performance information to make any necessary changes to advance pedestrian and cyclist safety efforts. (Recommendation 2) |
In January 2023, NHTSA officials stated that they plan to complete their review of pedestrian and cyclist countermeasures implemented by states by the end of the calendar year 2023. The officials also stated that in July 2022, NHTSA conducted a public information campaign to address speeding behaviors. However, NHTSA has not stated how these actions will address our recommendation for NHTSA to develop performance measures for NHTSA and the program offices responsible for implementing pedestrian and cyclist safety activities to demonstrate how these activities contribute to safety goals. Without such measures, NHTSA will continue to lack performance information necessary to improve their efforts and ensure their various pedestrian and cyclist safety activities are resulting in expected improvements in safety. As such, we believe NHTSA should fully implement our recommendations, and we will continue to monitor its efforts to do so.
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| Federal Highway Administration | The FHWA Administrator should more fully use performance management practices to guide its pedestrian and cyclist safety activities, such as (1) by developing performance measures for FHWA and the program offices responsible for implementing pedestrian and cyclist safety activities to demonstrate how these activities contribute to safety goals, and (2) by using performance information to make any necessary changes to advance pedestrian and cyclist safety efforts. (Recommendation 3) |
In January 2023, DOT reiterated that it partially concurred with this recommendation, and has taken some steps to begin addressing it. Specifically, FHWA officials reported that they are using project information reported by states to develop performance measures on pedestrian and bicyclist infrastructure countermeasure implementation. For example, FHWA is tracking the number of projects and total expenditures for pedestrian and bicyclist countermeasures funded through the FHWA federal-aid programs. In addition, the officials noted that, as part of FHWA's Complete Streets initiative, the agency is working to identify how separate roadway countermeasures that are installed in concert work together to improve safety. This study is expected to be completed in FY 2023. However, FHWA officials stated that it is infeasible at this time for FHWA to dedicate the resources needed to determine a direct link between national fatality data and specific FHWA program activities. FHWA stated it will continue to develop resources for states and others and support data-driven decision-making that will result in better use of performance measures. However, FHWA has not stated how these actions will address our recommendation for FHWA to develop performance measures for FHWA and the program offices responsible for implementing pedestrian and cyclist safety activities to demonstrate how these activities contribute to safety goals. Without such measures, FHWA will continue to lack performance information necessary to improve their efforts and ensure their various pedestrian and cyclist safety activities are resulting in expected improvements in safety. As such, we believe FHWA should fully implement our recommendation, and we will continue to monitor its efforts to do so.
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