Vision Zero Action Plan

20162018
ACTION PLAN
DRAFT
image
DRAFT
i | VISION ZERO ACTION PLAN
DRAFT
This plan is dedicated to everyone who has lost their
lives or been injured in crashes. We honor the lives
lost or irrevocably altered in traffic crashes by working
toward the goal of zero deaths & serious injuries.
CITY OF AUSTIN
| ii
DRAFT
image
Executive Summary
Vision Zero refers to a traffic safety concept that aims to reduce fatalities and serious injuries on roadways to zero. On
November 20th, 2014, the Austin City Council approved Resolution 20141120-103 calling for the City Manager to create
a Vision Zero Task Force to study this policy and to produce a
report, along with any recommendations, to the Council. This
plan is a result of the Task Forces effort. The plan articulates
an ambitious two-year strategy to reduce traffic deaths to zero
by 2025 in Austin.
The plan is underpinned by several key principles:
Traffic deaths and injuries are a preventable, public
health issue. Any death is too many.
People will make mistakes; the transportation system
should be designed so those mistakes arent fatal.
Safety is the primary consideration in transportation
decision-making.
iii | VISION ZERO ACTION PLAN
Traffic safety solutions must be addressed holistically, through:

o Education and culture change,
o Enforcement and prosecution, and
o Land use and transportation engineering.
In a typical year, 64 people lose their lives on Austins streets;
for each person killed, three to four more are seriously injured. Half of these deaths are people riding a bicycle or
motorcycle or people walking, even though these modes only
make up about 6.5 percent of all travelers. A larger proportion
of minority groups and homeless individuals make up these
numbers. In addition to the human loss, the costs of these
injuries and fatal crashes cost Austinites more than $500 million annually.
DRAFT
image
2) Public Education: Create a targeted public education

This plan builds upon ongoing safety efforts by the Austin
Police Department, Austin Transportation Department and
other regional agencies. It recognizes that these enforcement
and engineering efforts must be supported by reforms to
the courts, service industry, land use regulation and mental
health services.
To reduce crashes that result in deaths or serious injuries,
critical path actions for 2016-2018 include:
1) Apply Solutions: Focus on hotspot locations of crashes resulting in deaths or incapacitating injuries and
bolster key initiatives that target top contributing factors in deadly or incapacitating collisions. These top
contributing factors are: speed, improper maneuvers,
failure to yield, distraction, impairment, failure to
stop. This plan identifies a series of short-, medium-,
and long-term action in the categories of enforcement, engineering and education actions linked to
one or more of these contributing factors.
campaign to raise awareness of the severity of the

problem and solutions, including behavior changes.
This campaign will be a multi-agency and multi-media
effort to spread the safety message.
3) Harness Data: Collect, analyze, communicate and
share data that documents fatal and incapacitating
crashes and top contributing factors. An ongoing
effort to improve data quality will best direct limited
resources.
4) Develop a Vision Zero Program: The City of Austin will
staff and fund a program dedicated to improved
transportation safety, with a focus on enforcement,
engineering/design and education.
Austin joins several other U.S. cities in making this commitment including Seattle, New York City, San Francisco and San
Antonio. By making a commitment to reduce deaths and serious injuries to zero by 2025, Austin will become a safer, more
livable city for generations to come.
CITY OF AUSTIN
| iv
DRAFT
image
v | VISION ZERO ACTION PLAN
The Vision Zero Action Plan is the culmination of the work of the Vision Zero Task Force. The Task Force, created by Council in
November 2014, brought multiple perspectives to how Austin can improve traffic safety. The following departments, agencies,
and community groups participated in the Vision Zero Task Force.:
DRAFT
Community Groups (Commissions, Councils, Committees, Coalitions)

AARP
ADA Access and Sidewalk Task Force

ADAPT
ATX Safer Streets
Bicycle Advisory Council

Bike Austin
Community Advancement Network

(CAN)
Crossroads Coalition *
Ending Community Homelessness Coalition (ECHO)
Mothers against Drunk Driving (MADD)

Pedestrian Advisory Council (PAC)
Safe Kids Austin
Public Safety Commission (PSC)
Mayors Committee for People with

Disabilities
Urban Transportation Commission (UTC)
Health and Human Services Department (HHSD)
Law Department
City Departments
Planning and Zoning Department (PAZ)
Police Department (APD)
Transportation Department (ATD)
Public Works Department (PWD)
Austin-Travis County EMS

Fire Department (AFD)
Agencies
Capital Area Metropolitan Planning
Organization (CAMPO)
Texas A&M Transportation Institute (TTI)
Travis County District Attorneys Office
Capitol Metro
Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission

(TABC)
University of Texas Center for

Transportation Research (CTR)
Federal Highway Administration, Texas

Division (FHWA)
Texas Department of Transportation,

Austin District (TxDOT)
Urban Land Institute (ULI)
Individual Advocates
Scott Johnson (former member of the Distracted Driving Study Group)
CITY OF AUSTIN
| vi
* Crossroads Coalition is a group of public, private, and nonprofit organizations that meet to share information, identify opportunities for collaboration and develop new long-term sustained efforts to help people share the road safely.
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Table of Contents
Introduction
What is Vision Zero?
DRAFT
Austin Needs Vision Zero

Whos Affected?
Cost of Collisions
Personal Responsibility
A Need for Safer Streets
Austins Vision for Safer Streets

Principles of Vision Zero
Building on Success
Critical Actions
Pledge
Glossary
References
Vision Zero is an ongoing effort. Additional information and updates
will be made available on the Vision Zero website:
austintexas.gov/visionzero
Look for this icon to indicate link to further resources online.
Vision Zeros goal is simple: zero traffic

deaths and serious injuries in Austin by 2025.
Our goal can only be zero, and achieving it
will take all Austinites.
DRAFT
Introduction
The Austin City Council charged the Vision Zero Task

Force with addressing the ongoing tragedy on Austins
streets: in an average year, 64 people are killed in
crashes. The past year underscores the urgency of action:
more people died on Austin roads in 2015 than ever
before.
This is a quiet crisis that remains muted in the
background for most people, until it is inescapably front
and center for another person, another family. For each
person killed, three to four more victims of crashes are
seriously injured, changing their lives forever. The physical
and emotional trauma for victims, survivors, and loved
ones left to mourn makes it a moral imperative that we
end this violence.
The causes of these crashes are knownspeed,
impairment, distraction, failing to yield or stop, and
dangerous and improper maneuversand there are
measures in place to address many of them. But in the
past, these crashes were seen as discrete problems with
discrete solutions. Vision Zero frames transportation
safety differently: deaths and injuries are the result of
a larger, systemic failure, requiring a coordinated and
collaborative effort on the part of all City departments,
partnering agencies, and community groups.
1 | VISION ZERO ACTION PLAN
Vision Zeros goal is simple: zero traffic deaths and

serious injuries in Austin by 2025. The goal can only be
zero, and achieving it will take all Austinites. Getting there
will not be easy.
The effort starts by changing the way society perceives
traffic deaths and injuries: no longer are they accidents
or the unfortunate, but unavoidable, cost of doing
business. Traffic deaths and injuries are a preventable
public health problem.
Preventing traffic deaths and injuries requires a
comprehensive approach to transportation safety,
combining education and culture change, enforcement
and prosecution, and land use, urban design, and
transportation engineering. People will make mistakes
whether walking, bicycling, or driving. The challenge is to
work collectively to prevent those mistakes from being
fatal. To save lives and prevent injuries, safety must be
the primary consideration when making land use and
transportation decisions. Actions must also go beyond
conventional approaches to education, enforcement, and
engineering to reach and respond to the needs of our
most vulnerable populations.
DRAFT
Vision Zero ATX organized a vigil at Austin City Hall on September

30, 2015 to remember traffic victims.
Successes will be incremental and changes in and use

patterns and street design will take time and resources,
but this must start today. Collecting more robust data
and analyzing and sharing that data can help to direct
resources where they are most needed. Media must
elevate the magnitude of this problem to raise awareness
and shape safer behaviors. These two short-term actions
can influence ongoing, system-wide change.
Enforcement must be prioritized where it can have the
greatest effect immediately. The Police Department
serves as the front line for preventing injuries and
deaths through enforcement initiatives. It is critical that
enforcement be targeted at crash hotspot locations and
on top dangerous behaviors that cause fatal and serious
injury crashes.
Engineering improvements are underway at five
intersections with the highest crash rates that can
be made safer with engineering. The Transportation
Department will continue to evaluate crash hotspot
locations and look for opportunities for rapid
implementation of engineering safety improvements.
The definition of high speed must change: speeds over
30 miles-per-hour are dangerous for people walking or
biking. Nine out of ten healthy adults hit by a vehicle
traveling 20 mph will survive, but at just 40 mph, those

odds are reversed, making what many consider to be
slow, potentially deadly.
The Vision Zero Task Force, its member departments,
agencies, and community groups, are united in a goal of
stemming the tragic trend of deaths and injuries. This
initial Action Plan is a coordinated effort toward making
Austins streets safer. As this plan is implemented, the
Task Force will evaluate the effectiveness of the actions
outlined in this Action Plan and refine strategies to
continually work towards eliminating deaths and serious
injuries.
Zero deaths and serious injuries is

a bold goal, but it is achievable: the
causes of traffic deaths and injuries are
unequivocally preventable.
The Vision Zero Task Force honors
the lives lost or irrevocably altered by
working toward zero. Any traffic death or
injury is too many.
CITY OF AUSTIN
| 2
DRAFT
What is Vision Zero?
Vision Zero is a proven, data-driven approach to
reducing transportation-related injuries and saving
lives. Vision Zero is a goal of working toward the only
acceptable number of traffic deaths and serious
injuries: zero. The Vision Zero concept originated
in Sweden in 1997 and has since been adopted
in countries around the globe, and across the U.S.
More than 30 states and the Federal Highway Ad-
ministration (FHWA) have adopted Vision Zero as a

national strategy, called Toward Zero Deaths. More
recently, cities including New York, Chicago, Boston,
San Francisco, Seattle, Portland, San Diego, have
adopted Vision Zero policies and short term Action
Plans. In Texas, Houston recently adopted a Vision
Zero policy and San Antonio is also developing a
Vision Zero Action Plan.
DRAFT
Principles of Vision Zero
Traffic deaths and injuries are a

preventable, public health issue. Any
death is too many.
People will make mistakes; the

transportation system should be
designed so those mistakes are not
fatal.
Safety is the primary consideration in

transportation decision-making.
Traffic safety solutions must be

addressed holistically, through:

Education and culture change,
Enforcement and prosecution, and
Land use and transportation

engineering.
CITY OF AUSTIN
| 4
Successes Elsewhere
Vision Zero has proven successful in reducing traffic
deaths. The places that have introduced Vision
Zero and similar policies have seen a reduction in
the numbers of deaths and serious injuries. Sweden and the Netherlands have some of the lowest
transportation-related fatality rates in the world.1
Vision Zero has also demonstrated its effectiveness
in the U.S. After adopting their Vision Zero Action
Plan, New York City had the lowest number of traffic
deaths on record.2
DRAFT
In Utah, which has development patterns more

similar to Austins, Vision Zero helped the state
reduce traffic deaths by 48 percent since adoption
in 2003.3 Provo, Utah also shows that preventing all
Seattle (2015)
Portland (2015)
deaths is possible; in 2011 not a single person died

on Provos roads.4
San Francisco (2014)
Chicago (2012)
San Jose (2015)

Los Angeles (2014)
San Diego (2014)
The Vision Zero Network, a collaborative

campaign focused on advancing safe streets
through the Vision Zero approach, is working to
develop and share best practices and support
cities across the country working toward
eliminating traffic deaths and injuries.
Washing
DRAFT
Sweden (1997)
traffic deaths down

30% since
adopting the
first-in-the-world
policy
Boston (2015)
gton DC
New York City (2014)
formatting
CITY OF AUSTIN
| 6
DRAFT
For every traffic death, three to four people suffer serious, and in some cases, life-altering injuries.
Austin Needs Vision Zero

Austin is a great place to live. Austin is regularly high
on best of cities lists, whether for jobs, music,
barbecue, or just about anything else. As the Austin
Business Journal said, Austin is Best for everything
and everyone.5 Unfortunately, the city is also on
some far less desirable lists. Austin ranks as the
13th most dangerous city for traffic for cities with a
population over 500,000.6 On average, 64 people
are killed on Austins roads and 200 are seriously injured each year. This means more people lose their
lives in crashes in Austin than to gun violence.
Last year was a particularly deadly year: 102 Austinites were killed in traffic collisions in 2015.
These deaths and injuries are more than

numbers: each one of these lives lost is
a tragedy to the families and loved ones
left behind. Each injury is a persons life
forever changed. Each is a part of a city,
state, national, and worldwide public
health crisis.
Each is preventable. Through the
coordinated efforts of Vision Zero,
Austins goal is to eliminate traffic
deaths and serious injuries by 2025.
Transportation Fatalities by Mode vs. Avg. Gas Price

60,000
3.5
50,000
placeholder
2.5
DRAFT
30,000
1.5
Gas Price in 2013$
Deaths
40,000
20,000
10,000
0.5
2011
2008
2005
2002
1999
1996
1993
1990
1975
Passenger car occupants
Motorcyclists
Pedestrians
Pedalcyclists
Bus occupants
Truck occupantse, light
Truck occupantse, large
Retail Gas prices (2013$/gal)
Traffic
correlate
vehicle
miles
trvaeled,
which
is strongly
influenced by the economy and gas prices. When people drive
Sources:deaths
Transportation
Fatalitieswith
by Mode,
US DOT,
Research
and Innovative
Technology
Administration,
http://www.rita.dot.gov/bts/sites/rita.dot.gov.bts/files/publications/national_transportation_statistics/html/table_02_01.html_mfd
more--as
they do when the economy is good and gas prices are low--the risk of crashes go up.
Avg. Historical Annual Gasoline Pump Price, Energy.gov, http://energy.gov/eere/vehicles/fact-835-august-25-average-historical-annual-gasoline-pump-price-1929-2013
Sources: Transportation Fatalities by Mode, US DOT, Research and Innovative Technology Administration, http://www.rita.dot.
gov/bts/sites/rita.dot.gov.bts/files/publications/national_transportation_statistics/html/table_02_01.html_mfd. Avg. Historical
Annual Gasoline Pump Price, Energy.gov, http://energy.gov/eere/vehicles/fact-835-august-25-average-historical-annual-gasoline-pump-price-1929-2013
Part of a National Trend
Who is Affected?
Austins transportation safety issues mirror trends

we see across the U.S. In 2013, 32,719 people died
in traffic collisions in the United States7equivalent
to a 747 plane falling out of the sky every week.
Most of these crashes are suffered by people traveling in cars. The good news is that this number is
down from a peak in 1976 of 54,589 people. Much
of this decrease is thanks to safer roadway design,
safety features in vehicle design, such as airbags,
and cultural shifts such as increases in seatbelt use
and reductions in drinking and driving. However,
while these safety improvements are saving the lives
of people traveling within vehicles, it is a different
story for people outside of them.
Traffic deaths and injuries are a public health issue

affecting all road users and all communities, but
some groups are disproportionately affected. In
particular, people traveling by modes other than
driving, minority groups, and people experiencing
homelessness are more likely to be killed or injured
in traffic collisions. For Austin to achieve zero deaths
and zero serious injuries by 2025, we will need to
focus resources on vulnerable populations.
CITY OF AUSTIN
| 8
DRAFT
Source: American Community Survey Journey to Work Data (2013 5-year aggregate) and City of Austin Traffic Safety Data.
While overall traffic fatalities have decreased nationally, pedestrian and bicycle fatalities have held constant or increased slightly. As a result, bicycle and
pedestrian deaths have increased as a percentage
of total traffic deaths. Across the US, people walking
accounted for 14 percent of all traffic fatalities in
2012, up from 11 percent in 2007. In Austin this
disparity is especially severe: pedestrians make up
almost a third of all traffic fatalities. People walking
or riding bicycles or motorcycles make up over half
of all traffic deaths, despite accounting for less than
7 percent of all travel.8
In 2012, Austin ranked seventh in the number of

pedestrians killed in U.S. cities with populations
more than 500,000, and had a fatality rate of 2.97
pedestrians killed per 100,000 residents.9 The Federal Highway Administration identified Austin as a
Pedestrian-Bicycle Focus City due to this high fatality
rate for pedestrians. This provides Austin with technical support and professional training opportunities
on best practices in transportation safety improvement strategies.
Walking & Bicycling Crash Rates
8%
8
citywide
central city
DRAFT
7%
7
citywide
central city
Crash Rate
6%
6
5%
5
4%
4
3%
3
2%
2
1%
1
2005
2006
2007
2008
2009
2010
2011
2012
2013
2014
2005
2006
2007
2008
2009
2010
2011
2012
2013
2014
Year
Crash rates for people walking and biking have been declining, with safety in the central city especially improving.
While bicyclists and pedestrians are over represented in all roadway deaths, Austins city-wide bicycle
and pedestrian crash rate (defined as the crashes
per year per cyclist or pedestrian, respectively) has
actually been in decline since 2004 due to the
sharp increase in walking and bicycling rates in the
city. This increase in walking and biking as a means

of transportation may be attributed to greater
awareness in the health benefits of walking and
bicycling, improvements in network connectivity or a
combination thereof.
CITY OF AUSTIN
| 10
formatting
DRAFT
Austin falls in the middle among the top 25 largest cities in the U.S. for fatality rates. Source: NHTSA, 2013.
The fatality rates for the largest US cities shown in

the graph above also demonstrates an important
and often overlooked factor in transportation safety:
land use patterns. Decades of developing around
driving has created spread out, disconnected land
use patterns that encourage driving to the detriment of other modes. Less density, longer blocks,
and lack of street connectivity directly contribute to
higher traffic deaths.10
Development patterns may also have a connection
to some of our most vulnerable populations. Research reveals disparities in safety for minorities,
people with lower income, and for those with less
education11, groups who are increasingly priced
out of Austins most urban neighborhoods. Traffic

deaths and injuries may be colorblind, but Black and
Hispanic communities are disproportionately affected, and many of the corridors with high numbers of
injuries and deaths are located in areas with higher
poverty rates.
People experiencing homelessnessa group often
pushed to live in some of the least desirable locations, including along high-speed roadsare one
of the largest portions of traffic victims. An Austin-American Statesman investigation found that 14
percent of deaths within the homeless population
between 2013 and 2014 were caused by vehicles.12
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Join_Count / LENGTH_OF_SEGMENT
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33.8611917 - 74.2923652
77.6849874 - 156.911972
greater number of
246.852629 - 474.270809
EXTERNAL.census_tracts_2010
fatal or
pov_rate_1
incapacitating
crashes
0.000000 - 0.065569
0.065570 - 0.135613
0.135614 - 0.224993
0.224994 - 0.339521
0.339522 - 0.507418
0.507419 - 0.854710
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DRAFT
formatting
pop.
Between January 1 and August 31, 2015, people

walking made up more than 30 percent of traffic
deaths and of those, 43 percent were people experiencing homelessness. In the majority of these tragedies, the victim was attempting to cross an arterial
street or other high-speed road.13
Improving the safety of these vulnerable populations
will require measures beyond engineering, enforcement, and conventional education or media. Collecting robust data will help to better understand the social, economic, and geographic disparities of traffic
deaths and serious injuries. As this data is collected
deaths + incapacitating
injuries
and understanding is refined, resources must be

directed to address these disparities. These communities should be involved during the planning,
implementation, and evaluation of safety efforts,
and extra care should be taken that solutions do not
incur unintended consequences for these communities. This Action Plan calls for representatives from
these groups to be a part of the continuing Vision
Zero Task Force to ensure these disparities are addressed in the implementation of this Action Plan.
CITY OF AUSTIN
| 14
DRAFT
Cost of Collisions
Safety is expensive, but not nearly as expensive as injuries and

deaths. In addition to the tragedy
and trauma suffered by victims
of traffic collisions and their loved
ones, traffic collisions are also an
expensive drain on the economy.
Fatal and injury crashes in Austin
are estimated to cost over half a
billion dollars annually. Non-injury collisions add additional cost
burden.
Thats enough to fund over 800
miles of new sidewalks (35% of
our 2,270 missing miles)14
or over 6,600 new pedestrian hybrid beacons (PHBs),15 both pieces of successful safety infrastructure in short supply in Austin.
As acknowledged in this Action
Plan, many of the recommendations aimed at eliminating traffic

deaths and injuries will take time
and money, but society pays
either way: with infrastructure,
enforcement, and education, or
with injuries and deaths. What if
half a billion dollars savings was
invested into education, enforcement, and engineering strategies
to prevent injuries and deaths
from crashes?
DRAFT
2015 has been a particularly dangerous
year and the City must continue to improve
the safety of the transportation system
for all people. With this Vision Zero Action
Plan, Austin joins a growing roster of cities,
states, and countries that have said that
any traffic death or injury is too many.
CITY OF AUSTIN
| 16
Improper movements,
e.g. lane changing,
backing, or turning
DRAFT
Driver inattention
or distraction
75%
In crashes with a recorded

contributing factor,
6 behaviors contributed to
21%
all other
contributing
factors
Failure to yield
right of way
79%
of fatal or incapacitating
crashes
Speed
Alcohol + drugs
Failure to stop
STOP
Personal Responsibility
1. Improper movements;
Taking personal responsibility for ones safety and

the safety of others is essential to achieving Vision
Zero. Dangerous driver choices are the cause in
more than 90 percent of fatal or incapacitating
injury crashes in Austin. Between 2010 and 2014,
six key behaviors were listed in the Austin Police
Departments crash reports for 79 percent of fatal
or incapacitating crashes in crashes with a recorded
2. Driver inattention or distraction;
contributing factor. These six behaviors are:
3. Failure to yield right of way;

4. Speed;
5. Alcohol and drugs; and
6. Failure to stop.
Well over half of all fatal crashes involved

imapirment. Impairment was a factor in 75%
of driver deaths and over half of pedestrian
deaths. Source: APD, as of 1/8/16 pending
toxicology results.
DRAFT
61%
of fatal crashes involved

impairment in 2015
53%
Driving Under the Influence (DUI) was a contributing

factor in half of all traffic fatalities for past few years.
In 2015, 53 percent of pedestrian fatalities involved
an inebriated pedestrian and 75 percent of driver
deaths involved an intoxicated driver. This underscores the personal responsibility each and every
75%
Note: The six dangerous behaviors combine

related contributing factors. For example,
speed includes failed to control speed,
unsafe speed, and speeding (over limit).
This graphic is based on TXDOT data, which
comes from the information police officers
fill out on the crash report (CR-3) while at the
scene of the crash. This is a rich data source
for looking at crashes, but comes with some
caveats.
Some fields on the crash forms may be left
blank, including when an officer fills out
information in one field but not another. For
instance, some information may be documented in charges, but not in contributing
factors. It also doesnt include updates after
a crash investigation or toxicology screenings.
Contributing factors give a good picture of the
factors leading to crashes, but may systematically under report certain dangerous behaviors. City staff are currently exploring ways to
best capture this data.
traveler has to reducing serious injuries and fatalities. Making the right choice to put the phone down,
maintain safe speeds and designating a sober driver
are all choices we can make daily to keep our roads
safer.
CITY OF AUSTIN
| 18
DRAFT
A Need for Safer Streets
The Imagine Austin Comprehensive Plan is the

communitys vision for Austin and how it will manage growth and change. The Imagine Austin Comprehensive Plan envisions an Austin that is more
walkable, bikeable, and transit-friendly. It calls for
an array of safe, convenient travel options for people
of all ages, abilities, and incomes so that they can
meet their daily needs within a short trip whether
walking, bicycling, taking transit, riding a motorcycle,
or driving. A well-connected, safe travel network is
foundational to achieving the goals in the Imagine
Austin Comprehensive Plan and for promoting public
health, safety, and welfare. In October 2015, the City
Council amended the Imagine Austin Comprehensive Plan to include Vision Zero as a policy goal.
Austins Vision for Safer

Streets
Austin embraces Vision Zero as a holistic approach

that elevates safe mobility as the top priority for the
transportation system by setting the goal of zero
deaths & zero serious injuries while traveling. Vision
Zero builds on multiple existing safety initiatives,
facilitates greater collaboration, leverages limited
resources between City departments, agencies,
and community partners, and requires a concerted,
multi-pronged approach that addresses:
land use, transportation, infrastructure,
engineering, and design;
enforcement and prosecution;
education, culture change, public health, and
equity.
By adopting Vision Zero, the City

commits to a goal of eliminating
transportation-related deaths and
serious injuries by 2025.
DRAFT
Building on Success
The City of Austin is already addressing many aspects of transportation safety. These include continuous improvements to the design and engineering
of our streets, for people traveling all modes, led by
the Austin Transportation Department; the enforcement efforts of the Austin Police Department; the
Complete Streets policy and program based at
Austin Transportation Department; and ordinances
such as Distractive Driving and Vulnerable Users/
three-foot passing.
Despite these successes, the City recognizes that

more must be done. The 2012 Traffic Fatality Report, produced by the Transportation, Police, and
Public Works Departments noted that although the
many initiatives underway by multiple departments
demonstrate a commitment to traffic safety, these
initiatives lack a framework that ties them together
within the context of overarching goals, objectives
and performance measures; and compete among
other priorities and programs for staff time. The Vision Zero Action Plan addresses this need by providing an overarching goal and framework to unite the
communitys transportation safety efforts.
The Vision Zero Action Plan is designed to bolster

the efforts already underway, as well as to identify
new strategies, for preventing injuries and saving
lives. By approaching transportation safety holistically, this Vision Zero Action Plan specifically encourages collaboration between departments, agencies,
and the wider community to achieve safer streets for
everyone.
The Austin City Council appointed a Vision Zero Task
Force to make the recommendations for improving
safety contained in this Vision Zero Action Plan. This
multidisciplinary Task Force included representatives from multiple City departments, Federal and
State agencies, research institutions, and community groups, all of whom are collaborating to identify
solutions. The Vision Zero Action Plan is the culmination of the Vision Zero Task Forces work over the
past year and an initial step in an ongoing collaborative effort to reduce injuries and save lives.
CITY OF AUSTIN
| 20
DRAFT
The Austin Walkability Summit
focused on legal rights and enforcement to increase safety of people
who walk in Austin & led to the
formation of the Pedestrian Advisory
Council.
2012
Following the SXSW drunken driving

incident that killed four people and
injured almost two dozen, Police
Chief Art Acevedo held a Traffic
Safety Symposium in August, which
worked to address many of the
long-term issues contributing to
intoxicated, impaired and aggressive
driving..
2009
2014
formatti
In Novem
Council appoin
Force to m
tions for impr
in this V
ft
3-foot passing law adopted in Austin.

The City also adopted a Bicycle Master
Plan that pledges to reduce bicycle
deaths and injuries by implementing
safety measures for all roadway users,
including bicyclists.
Bicycle Mas
adopted.
In June, Austins Complete Streets policy

advances the Imagine Austin Comprehensive
Plan by redefining the role of roadways: They
are public spaces that serve people first.
Safety, including a reduction in hazards for
pedestrians and bicyclists on Austins
roadways, is a fundamental consideration of
the Complete Streets policy. By making
Complete Streets principles a part of
planning, design, maintenance, and funding
decisions, the City is actively working to make
our roads safe and enjoyable, no matter how
you get around.
ster Plan update
In May of 2015, The City of Austin joined

over 200 other U.S. cities that have pledged
to improve safety through theUS Dept. of
Transportations Mayors Challenge for Safer
People, Safer Streets. The Austin Transportation Department leads this effort in partnership with seven other City Departments to
implement seven distinct challenges.
DRAFT
image: Alliance for Walking & Biking
A Fatality Review Board,

made up of the Austin
Transportation, Police, &
Planning & Zoning Departments, convened to review
traffic deaths and pursue
near-term improvements
through enforcement,
education, and engineering
strategies.
mber 2014, Austin City

nted a Vision Zero Task
make the recommendaroving safety contained
2015
ing
In October 2015,
Austin City Council
amended the
Imagine Austin
Comprehensive
Plan to include
Vision Zero as a
goal of the City of
Austin.
From January to November, the Vision Zero Task Force

met regularly to create this Vision Zero Action Plan.
The Task Force includes representatives from multiple
City departments, Federal and State agencies,
research institutions, and community groups, all of
whom are collaborating to identify solutions for this
public health crisis. This Vision Zero Action Plan is the
culmination of the Vision Zero Task Forces work over
the past 11 months and an initial step in an ongoing
collaborative effort to reduce injuries and save lives.
CITY OF AUSTIN
| 22
DRAFT
Austin Transportation Dept. installed temporary delineator posts as a rapid solution to dangerous turning movements at Slaughter and Mnchaca.
Critical Actions
Transportation-related injuries and deaths are a
multifaceted problem that will require continuous,
coordinated efforts to eradicate. The initial Vision
Zero Action Plan identifies steps the City of Austin,
other agencies, and the community should take in
the first two years; additional longer-term solutions
will be developed over the coming years. The Action
Plan focuses on ongoing and shorter-term actions
targeting the top contributing factors to injuries

and deaths, uniting transportation safety initiatives
across departments, partners, and solutions, as well
as creating a framework for monitoring and improving the efficacy of transportation safety actions.
To reduce crashes that result in deaths or serious
injuries, critical path actions for 2016-2018 include:
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Create a targeted, branded Vision Zero

education and media campaign raising
awareness of the severity of the problem and
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Focus on hotspot locations of crashes resulting

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Develop a Vision Zero Program: The City of

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CITY OF AUSTIN
| 24
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While individual crashes may appear to be random, looking at crashes

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tal and incapacitating crashes occurred on 8 percent of Austins roads.
Timeline for
implementation: ongoing
Address Top Contributing Factors in

Fatal or Incapacitating Crashes
1ST
LD
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1626
The interplay of multiple factors is likely involved in most crashes, but

the top contributing factors from crash reports of fatal or incapacitating crashes from 2010 to 2014 have clear implications on safety. Top
dangerous behaviors are explained next, followed by specific actions
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VISION ZERO ACTION PLAN
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Initial crash maps used

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35
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DRAFT
Speed
Speed is listed as a contributing factor in 10 percent

of all crashes resulting in incapacitating injuries or
death. Speed includes three contributing factors:
failed to control speed (22%), unsafe speed
(60%), and speeding overlimit (61%). Approximately 11 percent of those speed-related crashes
involved speeding over the limit, but even legal
speeds result in serious injuries or death in the
event of a miscalculation, moment of inattention, or
mistake. Taken as an individual contributing factor,
failed to control speed is the highest documented
contributing factor in fatal or incapacitating injury
crashes.
Research clearly links higher speeds to increased

crash occurrence and severity of crashes. Higher
speed increases stopping distance, making it harder
to avoid a crash and increasing the severity of crashes. A higher speeds, a drivers field of vision is effectively narrowed, inhibiting their ability to see and
react to potential hazards. Even when speed is not
a cause of a crash, it is the key variable influencing
the severity of injuries and damage. The Institute of
Transport Economics (2004) advises that if government wants to develop a road transport system in
which nobody is killed or permanently injured, speed
is the most important factor to regulate.16
20 mph 9 in 10 people hit walking survive
30
mph
20
40
mph
mph
9 in 10 survive
9 in 10 die
40 mph 9 in 10 people hit walking are killed
30
mph
20
mph
9 in 10 survive
40
mph
9 in 10 die
As speeds increase, field of vision decreases, and stopping distances,

crash risk, and crash severity increase.
CITY OF AUSTIN
| 26
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DRAFT
formatting
Figure 5 This graph shows the number and percent of crashes

where improper maneuvers were a contributing factor. Source:
TxDOT.
Improper Maneuvers
Improper maneuvers includes a wide range of dangerous driving behaviors, including failing to drive
in a single lane (25%), following too closely (24%),
faulty evasive actions (23%), and changing lanes
when unsafe (13%). Many of these mistakes are
influenced by roadway design and operational issues that increase drivers workload. Combined with
other factors like speed, intoxication, distraction,
geometric and operational deficiencies increase
likelihood of fatal and incapacitating collisions.
Many of these behaviors should be addressed
through education and greater awareness of the
potential severity of these behaviors.
Figure 6. This graph shows the number of serious injuries and

deaths as well as the percent of fatal crashes where failure to
yield was a contributing factor. Source: TxDOT.
Failure to Yield
Failure to yield the right-of-way is distinct from another top contributing factor, failure to stop, because
yielding does not require a roadway user to cease
forward movement altogether. Of the fatal or incapacitating crashes where failure to yield was cited
as a factor, the majority were pedestrians failing to
yield to vehicles (58%), followed by drivers making
left turns (24%), and failing to yield at private drives
(12%).
The pedestrian failing to yield the right of way
contributing factor requires additional analysis to
unpack and will likely require efforts beyond conventional education, enforcement, and engineering
solutions. APD has been compiling fatality crash
profiles for traffic deaths in 2015; looking at the
CITY OF AUSTIN
| 28
28 pedestrian deaths during the period between

January 1 and November 30, 2015, APD found that
93 percent of fatal crashes involved the pedestrian
crossing in a prohibited location. APD also found
that 39 percent of the pedestrians killed were people that were homeless at the time.
speed as a single contributing factor in deadly or

incapacitating injury crashes.
Addressing the high number of deaths among people experiencing homelessness will require efforts
beyond those involving education, encouragement
and enforcement. Land use and design have important influences on equity; particularly with homeless
populations. Homeless individuals tend to live in
undesirable and dangerous locations, often along
high-speed roads. These high-speed roads often
have long distances between legal and safe crossings. Next steps for addressing traffic deaths among
people experiencing homelessness include land use
and design analysis and working with people experiencing homelessness and social services groups
to better understand the challenges faced by this
group.
of people report texting while driving18a seemingly

harmless way of multitaskingbut research clearly
shows texting while driving drastically increases the
likelihood of being involved in a collision. Researchers have found that drivers using cellphones exhibited a level of impairment on par with driving drunk.
Austin has taken important steps toward discouraging distracted driving by banninghandheld use of
electronic devices while driving or bicycling.
DRAFT
Distraction
Distraction is a contributing factor in 6 percent

of incapacitating injury or fatal crashes, although
that percentage is likely significantly under counting distracted driving crashes. Between 2010 and
2014, driver inattention was the highest reported
contributing factor in police crash reports (15,378
crashes), and was second only to failed to control
Distracted driving is an especially pervasive problem

as smartphones have become ubiquitous. Nationally, in 2013, more than 3,000 people were killed in
crashes involving distracted drivers.17 High numbers
Hands-free use of cell phones may not go far

enough. Research, including studies compiled by
the National Safety Council, shows that our brains
have difficulty simultaneously processing movement
and languages, so much so that drivers looked, but
failed to see up to 50 percent of their surroundings
regardless of whether they were using hands-free
devices or not. Laboratory and on-road research
shows that talking on a hands-free cell phone or
using a speech-to-text email system reduces drivers
available mental resources that can be dedicated
to driving. Cognitive distraction can lead drivers to
miss visual cues, have slower reaction times, and
see in tunnel vision.19
DRAFT
Impairment
Impairment includes Driving Under the Influence

(DUI) and Driving While Intoxicated (DWI). Impairment is listed as a contributing factor in 7 percent
of incapacitating injury or fatal crashes according to
the contributing factors included in CR-3 crash reports, but the actual percentage of fatal or incapacitating injury crashes resulting from impairment is
much higher. The 7 percent is based on TXDOT data
drawn from the contributing factors information police officers fill out on the crash report (CR-3) while
at the scene of the crash. It does not include revised
information after APD has investigated the crash
and processed toxicology screenings, nor does it
account for other parts of the CR-3 form where an
officer may have indicated impairment (including
charges or may have contributed fields). To illustrate the gap between what is included in contributing factors on the CR-3 and what is ultimately found
to be a factor, between January and August of 2015
APD found that about 46 percent of fatal and severe
crashes involved impairment.
Failure to Stop
Failure to stop is when an operator does not stop,

yield and grant immediate use of the intersection as
required by an official traffic-control signal or device
(including a stop sign or yield right-of-way sign).
In this analysis, it includes disregard stop sign or
light (16%), failed to yield ROW stop sign (35%),
and failed to stop at proper place (29%). Disregarding stop sign or light is one of the top contributing factors cited in all crashes (2,590 instances)
between 2010 and 2014 and resulted in 51 deaths
or incapacitating injuries. It may be caused by roadway conditions, speed, distraction, or other factors.
Goal: Each of these contributing factors is absolutely preventable through a combination of education,
enforcement, and engineering/design. Changing the
way Austins streets and infrastructure is designed
to safely accommodate all users will be a long-term
proposition, but the City should begin directing
planning, enforcement, education, and engineering
resources to crash hotspots and to preventing the
behaviors that lead to incapacitating injuries or
deaths.
CITY OF AUSTIN
| 30
To that end, the following actions have been identified as near-term opportunities in need of resourcing:
Top Dangerous
Behaviors
Failure to Stop
Impairment
Distraction
Failure to Yield
Maneuvers
DRAFT
Speed
Action
Existing
initiatives, Agency(s)
if applica- responsible
ble
Ongoing & Short-Term Actions
Analyze crash hotspots and high injury locations

for causes of crashes and direct engineering,
enforcement, and education resources to high
injury and fatal crash hotspot locations. Reduce
serious crashes in top 25 intersections and top 5
a a
corridors by half in 5 years.
a a a a
Initial
mapping
included in
this Plan;
top 5 intersections
funded for
safety improvements
in FY16
a a a a
Highway
APD
Enforcement
Command
(HEC)
Speeding
Initiatives,
Arrive
Alive, STEP,
Regional
& Regular
Patrol
Additional staff, design, and construction funding

will be necessary.
ATD,
APD,
PAZ,
TXDOT
Enforcement
Target enforcement on high injury and fatal
roadways and on top contributing factors dangerous driving behaviors (improper movement,
in attention, failure to yield, speed, intoxication,
failure to stop.
2
a a
Enforce driver behavior around traffic calming

and crossing devices, including crosswalks,
Pedestrian Hybrid Beacons (PHB), Rectangular
Rapid Flash Beacon (RRFB), and LATM devices
(speed bumps, humps, pillows, chicanes).
LATM, PHB,
RRFB
a a
a a a a
Coordinate with Law and Prosecution to increase

prosecution of dangerous driving, especially
repeat offenders. Work with courts, judges, and
legislators to increase the penalties for actions
that result in deaths or serious injuries.
a a
a a a a
Increase the number of prosecutors who handle

traffic violations and create a group specifically
for prosecuting DUI/DWI.
a a
a a a a
APD,
ATD
APD,
Law,
Travis County,
Courts
Courts
Top Dangerous
Behaviors
Frame traffic offenses as a leading, but preventable, public health and safety problem and
educate judges, legislators, and the public to
increase awareness and to ensure punishments
are appropriate.
Fund new Highway Enforcement positions,

including a dedicated Night Highway Response
Team.
Coordinated enforcement across agencies.
10
Work with the Austin Police Department to continue enforcement of transit priority lanes.
HHS,
Law,
APD, Travis County
Failure to Stop
Impairment
Distraction
a a a a
Fund and expand the DWI Unit (e.g., to more No

Refusal events or going full time 24/7)
11
a a
Failure to Yield
Speed
Maneuvers
DRAFT
Action
Existing
ble
DWI unit,
Arrive Alive,
No Refusal
events
APD
APD
a a
a a a a
a a
a a a a
Design assurances against racial profiling and

targeting of enforcement of top contributing
factors. Ensure that communities of color, police
agencies, and community leaders are included in
the decision making and development of ena a
forcement plans and policies.
a a a a
APD, Travis County

Sheriffs, DPS
Capitol Metro, APD
ATD, Commissions
(African American
Resource Advisory,
Asian American
Quality of Life
Advisory, Hispanic
/ Latino Quality of
Life Advisory, Join
Inclusion)
CITY OF AUSTIN
| 32
Failure to Stop
Impairment
Distraction
Failure to Yield
Speed
Action
Maneuvers
Top Dangerous
Behaviors
Existing
ble
Engineering
DRAFT
Continue to implement the Complete Streets

policy. Fund infrastructure improvements for
alternative modes of travel (Bicycle Master Plan,
Pedestrian Safety Action Plan, Sidewalk Master
Plan, and Urban Trail Master Plan).
12
a a
13
Seek funding to establish a dedicated Traffic

Safety Engineering team with the financial
resources (enhanced analytical capabilities,
infrastructure improvements, operational
strategies, etc.) to work on safety engineering
projects toward the Vision Zero goal. This team
should include a minimum of 3 engineers and 3
technologists. Implement at least 5 major safety
improvement projects per year. Include safety as
the priority in every transportation project sponsored/ managed by the City.
14
Conduct speed studies at locations with speeding issues as identified in collision analysis. Consider these locations for revised posted speed
limits or speed management programs.
15
Study crash locations where right-on-red or left

turn movements were factors. Pilot right-turn on
red bans and expand protected only left-turns at a a
several of these locations and evaluate the effect
on safety.
16
Evaluate opportunities to expand existing and/

a a
or implement new transit priority treatments (e.g.
bus lanes, transit signal priority, queue jumps,
improved pedestrian access) along transit corridors.
17
Evaluate need for potential adjustments to interior lighting of buses for improved safety during
nighttime operations including reducing glare for
operators.
a a a a
Complete
Streets.
Mayors
Challenge
for Safer
People, Safer Streets.
Bicycle,
Sidewalk
and Urban
Trails Master Plans,
Pedestrian
Safety Action Plan
ATD, PWD
ATD, PWD
a a
a a a a
ATD, PWD
a
a
ATD
a a a a
a a a a
Transit Prior- ATD, PWD, Capital

ity Working
Metro
Group
Capital Metro
Failure to Stop
Impairment
Distraction
Failure to Yield
Speed
Action
Maneuvers
Top Dangerous
Behaviors
Existing
ble
Capital Metro will continue working with City of

a a
Austin/Austin Energy to evaluate need for lighting
along transit corridors and at intersections.
a a a a
18
Systems
Safety Team
Capitol Metro, Austin Energy
a a a a
Systems
Safety Team
Capitol Metro
19
Implement new transit vehicle engineering prina a

ciples (e.g. rear-of-vehicle chevrons, right-side
illumination during turns, lane departure technology) to reduce collisions.
Continue evaluating transit collision hot spots
and work with partner organizations to improve
safety conditions at those locations.
a a
a a a a
20
Systems
Safety Team
Capital Metro, ATD,

TxDOT
a a
a a a a
21
Work with CAMPO and TxDOT for funding opportunities (e.g., CAMPO regular program calls,
TxDOT district funds, and TxDOT/FHWA HSIP
annual funds for projects that are dedicated for
safety improvements).
a a a a
22
Work with all school districts within the City

a a
of Austins jurisdiction as well as charter and
private schools and the Citys Safe Routes to
Schools program to set a goal for safe, active
travel to schools. Invest in infrastructure improvements (LATM, PHBs, School Zones) to support
those goals.
a a a a
ATD
23
Identify locations with pedestrian safety issues

a a
using collision analysis maps and consider traffic
control devices (LATM, PHB, RRFB) or engineering improvements to allow safer crossings.
a a a a
ATD
24
Expand exclusive pedestrian crossing time (for

example through the use of leading pedestrian
intervals (LPIs), protected lefts) on high injury
network for people walking.
DRAFT
a a
CAMPO, TxDOT,
FHWA
Safe Routes
to School,
LATM, PHBs,
School
Zones
AISD, PWDs Safe

Routes to Schools
and Sidewalk programs, ATDs Active
Transportation
Program
CITY OF AUSTIN
| 34
Failure to Stop
Impairment
Distraction
Failure to Yield
Speed
Action
Maneuvers
Top Dangerous
Behaviors
Existing
ble
Education
DRAFT
a a a a
25
Implement a citywide, Vision Zero public edua a

cation campaign. Fund coordinated educational materials on how to travel safely by mode.
Include defensive behaviors based on top
contributing factors and best practices (e.g., look
twice for people before turning; dont enter an
intersection until youre certain its clear). Create
targeted campaigns for vulnerable groups (e.g.,
motorcyclists) and commercial drivers (livery
drivers). (See Critical Action #3 for more.)
ATD, PAZ, APD,

with support from
TxDOT Crossroads
Coalition, Pedestrian Advisory Council
a a
a a a a
26
Create a cross-departmental safety education

team, with dedicated staff and funding, with
membership from APD, ATD, HHSD, PAZ, EMS,
AFD, PWD.
APD, ATD, HHSD,

PAZ, EMS, AFD,
PWD
a a a a
Compact &
Connected
Training
PAZ, PWD, ATD, AE,

AWU, DSD
27
Create a Vision Zero training module and train all a a

staff that review, design, or implement projects
in the right of way to reiterate that all departments and staff are responsible for transportation safety.
a a
a a a a
Systems
Safety
Team, Get
Home Safe
website
Capitol Metro
28
Continue safety messaging onboard buses

and at/around bus stops through partnership
with KUT and other media outlets. Continue to
publicize Night Owl services as an alternative to
driving for service industry workers and intoxicated driving.
a a a a
29
Provide defensive travel training for all modes

a a
at vocational and college orientations and in
student housing to educate new students how to
travel safely in the city.
30
Work with social service providers to improve

safety of people experiencing homelessness, including educational outreach, improving visibility,
and establishing safe crossings (PHBs, RRFBs).
Convene a focus group of social service providers
and people experiencing homelessness to learn
how the City and its partners can better serve
and outreach to people experiencing homelessness.
ATD, Bike Austin,

Capital Metro
PHB Program
ECHO, ATCIC
Failure to Stop
Impairment
Distraction
Failure to Yield
Speed
Action
Maneuvers
Top Dangerous
Behaviors
Existing
ble
a a
a a a a
ATD, HHSD
31
Provide targeted outreach and training when

adding bike facilities to teach residents how to
use the facility and how to drive near people
using the facility. Educate drivers about the law
regarding crossing the yellow line when passing
a bicyclist.
a a
a a a a
City of Austin, Capitol Metro, AISD
32
Lead by example by adopting Vision Zero policies

for fleets and through education and training
targeting City, Capital Metro, AISD, garbage and
recycling collectors, other fleet operators, and
large employers.
APD, Courts
DRAFT
Policy
Consider changing the cite-and-release policy

for people who drive without a license or with a
suspended license.
a a
a a a a
33
a a a a
34
Include Vision Zero principles and land use, ura a

ban design, and engineering strategies to reduce
the top causes of crashes in coordinated revisions to the Land Development Code (CodeNEXT)
and the City Transportation Criteria Manual
(TCM) and policies.
a a
a a a a
ATD, PAZ
35
Continue transportation safety plans and efforts

and coordinate these more specific plans with
the Vision Zero Action Plan:
Pedestrian Safety Action Plan (currently
under development)
Consolidated Mobility Safety Plan (FY16)
Continue to build on Traffic Demand Managea a

ment (TDM) strategies, including those identified
in 2015 Traffic Congestion Action Plan. Encourage transportation alternatives to driving into
Downtown and other Imagine Austin Activity Centers to reduce the risks associated with driving.
Require TDM plans for special events. Educate,
publicize, encourage, and incentivize alternative
travel options. Decrease rate of people driving
alone by 2% per year (as per American Community Survey).
a a a a
ATD, Capitol Metro
36
CodeNEXT,
TCM
PAZ, ATD
Reduce total VMT per capita by 1% per year in

Austin
CITY OF AUSTIN
| 36
37
Research distracted driving and make recommendations for further expanding the distracted
driving/hands-free ordinance to address issues
around the three types of driver distraction: manual, visual, and cognitive distraction.
38
Explore requiring bars to serve food or partner

with food trucks to provide food.
Failure to Stop
Impairment
Distraction
Failure to Yield
Speed
Action
Maneuvers
Top Dangerous
Behaviors
Existing
ble
Hands free
ordinance
Task Force
DRAFT
a
a a
ATX Safer Streets
Medium-Term Actions
Enforcement
Install red light cameras at 20 new authorized

locations.
a a
40
Establish a sobriety center as an alternative to

jail for the dangerously intoxicated
APD, ATD, TABC
41
Establish server training to reduce risks associat- a

ed with the retail alcohol environment.
APD, TABC
42
Enhance the current City Ordinance for areas

unsafe to pedestrians.
43
Pursue legislative changes for automated speed

enforcement in school zones
39
existing red
light cameras
APD, ATD
APD
APD, ATD, Task

Force
ATD
44
Use speed feedback warning signs (programmable speed boards with speed relative to posted
speed) to reinforce education and enforcement
initiatives and encourage speed compliance.
Capitol Metro, UT
45
Capital Metro will work with the University of

Texas to consider safer vehicle parking methods
(e.g. reverse angle parking) to reduce collisions
along transit corridors through campus.
Capitol Metro, PWD
46
Capital Metro will work with the City of Austin

to consider safer vehicle parking methods (e.g.
reverse angle parking) to reduce collisions along
transit corridors through campus.
Capital Metro will continue to collaborate with
the City of Austin to ensure safe pedestrian access to transit stops.
Capital Metro, PWD
47
Engineering
Failure to Stop
Impairment
Distraction
Failure to Yield
Speed
Action
Maneuvers
Top Dangerous
Behaviors
Existing
ble
48
Evaluate new and existing bus stops to reduce

rear-end collisions at intersections.
Capitol Metro, ATD
a a
49
Work to equip all City fleet vehicles with safety

related devices, designs (high visibility vehicles,
back-up cameras, and rear wheel side guards),
and technology that record dangerous driving
behaviors (speeding, failing to stop and yield).
Encourage adoption by other large employers
and agencies.
a a
a a a a
ATD
50
Continue to work with Google, Rocky Mountain

Institute, and other tech companies to pioneer
autonomous vehicle testing and adoption to
improve safety.
ATD
51
Enhance signal system software and equipment

to detect red light running. Use resulting data to
prioritize increased enforcement (assign officers
or deploy red light cameras) and/or apply signal
timing treatments to reduce red light running
violations.
52
Deploy next generation emergency vehicle

preemption (GPS location tracking with routebased preemption), to reduce response times
and increase safety when first responders travel
through signalized intersections.
DRAFT
a
City of Austin
ATD
CITY OF AUSTIN
| 38
53
Failure to Stop
Impairment
Distraction
Failure to Yield
Speed
Action
Maneuvers
Top Dangerous
Behaviors
Conduct a pilot project to assess feasibility of

advanced detection techniques to estimate
the frequency and type of near-miss collisions
within signalized intersections. This could also
be incrementally expanded within smart cities
to first use upstream detection then to DSRC
equipment and possibly then to GPS tracking via
wireless carriers to calculate collision potential. If
a collision is likely, then adjust signal timing and/
or warn approaching motorists and eventually in
future cause brakes to be applied automatically.
Existing
ble
ATD
DRAFT
Education
a a a a
COA PIO, HHSD
54
Encourage print, television, and social media

a a
leaders to frame traffic crashes as tragic and preventable occurrences when reporting on them.
Work with media to create greater public awareness of the public health crisis of traffic fatalities
and serious injuries and Vision Zero efforts.
a a
a a a a
COA Risk Management
55
Incorporate Vision Zero for all modes into Citys

defensive driving classes and curriculum. Work
with other agencies to share and develop this
training and encourage adoption by outside
organizations (e.g., online courses, corporate
trainers).
a a a a
COA Risk Management
56
Require City employees to renew defensive driva a

ing training every year for commercial drivers and
every two years for non-commercial drivers. Work
with other agencies to adopt similar training
frequencies.
Create online safety training program for all
modes (walk, bike, motorcycle, transit, drive).
Consider using this in place of defensive driving.
a a
a a a a
57
Work with the University of Texas to create and

implement a new pedestrian/transit safety campaign.
a a
a a a a
58
Capitol Metro, UT
Policy
Failure to Stop
Impairment
Distraction
Failure to Yield
Speed
Action
Maneuvers
Top Dangerous
Behaviors
Existing
ble
DRAFT
a
59
Explore the prohibition, through the creation of

a City ordinance, of motor vehicles passing from
the left and turning right in front of a bus within
100 ft. of an intersection to reduce the risk of
ped/bike and vehicle collisions.
60
Through update to Land Development Code, ensure that road signs and poles along transit corridors are maintained at least 18 (and preferably
24) from the curb to eliminate collisions with
right-side fixed objects and head-on collisions
due to crossing over center line.
Meet the communitys short term goals to house
Austinites experiencing homelessness to reduce
the number of people experiencing homelessness who are injured or killed in traffic. Reduce
unsheltered homeless population in Austin by
50% in 5 years.
a a
a a a a
ATCIC, ECHO
Shorten drivers license renewal from 6 years to

4 years and require defensive driving or drivers
education for new residents and when renewing.
a a
a a a a
DMV, Task Force
Require defensive driving for all top contributing

factors citations.
a a
a a a a
Courts
61
Capitol Metro, ATD,

APD
Austin Energy, PAZ,

Capitol Metro
Reduce number of homeless persons being seriously hurt or killed in traffic by 25% per year.
Longer-Term Actions
Education
62
63
Policy
64
Work at the local, state, and federal level toward

adopting a safe system approach of lowering
speed limits to minimize serious and fatal crash
risk. Partner with other Texas cities looking for
similar goals (e.g. San Antonio).
65
Pursue Housing First model of ending homelessness to address larger societal issues contributing to crashes involving homeless persons
crossing the roadway. Reduce the number of
people experiencing homelessness in Austin to
functional zero by 2025.
Task Force
ATCIC, ECHO
CITY OF AUSTIN
| 40
DRAFT
2
Create a targeted, branded Vision Zero
education and media campaign raising
awareness of the severity of the problem
and solutions, including behavior changes
City of Austin, with support
from Texas Department of
Transportation, Crossroads
Coalition, Bike Austin, Federal
Highway Administration,
National Highway Traffic Safety
Administration.
Timeline for
implementation: ongoing;
phased: awareness of problem
education of dangerous
behaviors behavior change
Preventing injuries and death on Austins roads will take everyones efforts. An ongoing conversation about dangerous driving behaviors (Top
Contributing Factors), improving travel education, and rethinking how
we design our transportation systems will require all Austinites and
include important discussions about the tradeoffs between the choices one must make. Targeted outreach and educational campaigns
geared towards specific audiences (e.g., bicyclists, drivers, pedestrians
and motorcyclists) will provide information about how each can safely
interact with the other while traveling on Austins roadways. Vision
Zero Taskforce agencies will partner with local, state, federal and
community organizations on educating people who travel in Austin the
top contributing factor and how they can change their behavior to make
traveling safer. The Vision Zero media campaign will provide a common
brand and unite all of the traffic safety initiatives and related marketing
in the region. The Vision Zero media campaign should focus on helping
public information officers (PIOs) and others deliver standard messaging regarding traffic safety in the news media, including standard Vision
Zero messages and responses to questions about crashes.
DRAFT
Ad from New York Citys Choices media
campaign for their Vision Zero efforts.
Goal: A strong, branded, Vision Zero educational media campaign

should use data to educate all Austinites on the severity of the problem
and the dangerous traveling behaviors that lead to serious injuries and
death (from the top contributing factors, including impaired driving and
speed), in order to start changing attitudes and behaviors. The media
campaign should be inclusive, culturally-sensitive, and tailored to the
diversity of people (e.g., all ages, races, ethnicities, socio-economic
groups) in Austin. City staff will pursue funding for the educational
campaign, such as TxDOT/NHTSA Section 402 grants and other
sources. Using data and mapping, Vision Zero Taskforce agencies
will partner to produce events in hotspot areas, around the top
contributing factors, to focus on changing behaviors in those areas.
CITY OF AUSTIN
| 42
LA
KE
OR
R
M
MA
NO
R
DE
CK
JO
HN
NY
ST
35
12TH
969
SP
6TH
LE
UP
P
24TH
NG
DA
RES
Lady Bird Lake
NG
CO
Harness
Data: Collect, analyze,
7TH
CES
communicate
and share data that
AR
C
VEZ and incapacitating
documentsHA
fatal
crashes and top contributing factors.
Colora
OLT
OR
A data-driven approach to safety is necessary to achieve Vision Zero.

Directing resources to address injuries and deaths within our transportation system requires good data, whether for targeting enforcement,
identifying engineering countermeasures and priority locations, or
N WHITE campaigns.
craftingBE
educational
7
City of Austin, Texas

Department of Transportation,
Bike Austin, Federal Highway
Administration, National
Highway Traffic Safety
Administration.
This initial Vision Zero Action Plan includes information on top contributing factors of injury and fatal collisions and crash locations, but this
data must be continuously refined and reevaluated in order to best
BU
EY
direct resources.
R
SN
Timeline for
implementation:
AS
ST
973
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ER
FIE
RT
PO
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DRAFT
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EN
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290 HWY
51
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ON
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45T
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WE
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Goal: Collect baseline data, monitor, and
evaluate the effects of
immediate and ongoing
PE
AM
LI
IL
enforcement, engineering, and educational efforts. As these data are

collected, shared, and evaluated, the City should hone in on crash
3
97
N
O
BLUFF SPRING
NN
CA
hotspots and contributing causes to crashes using proven tactics.

812
973
290
Specific Actions:
RI
S
Action
Agency(s) responsible
DE
CK
ER
Data Sets, Sharing, Quality, & Resources

1
Investigate additional datasets to analyze, map, and/or improve (e.g.,

MuniCourt ticket information, EMS data).
2
Provide additional resources to the current bicycle/pedestrian monitoring
program to regularly collect bike/pedestrian counts. Fund and develop a
more robust data collection program for non-motorized travel monitoring.
DE Fund, perform, and promote research on vulnerable users and walking,
CK
driving,
motorcycling, and bicycling behaviors and patterns in the city.
ER
L
3
CreateAaK platform and/or process to better share data, including geospaE
tial data and maps, across City departments, agencies that are affected
DE
by transportation safety.
CK
ER
4
LAthat
Establish a common crash analysis tool
KE can identify/report on
Municourt, EMS, HHSD
DRAFT
ATD, HHSD
CTM, PAZ, HHSD, ATD, APD, EMS,

PWD
13
0
Walter E. Long Lake
97
13
crash patterns and trends across the region as well as along a roadway and within/at an intersection and automatically generate collision diagrams.
ado River6
9
10
SS
AR
EL
CAMPO, TxDOT, ATD, APD, HSSD
HHSD, TDSHS
Hire at least one injury prevention epidemiologist position at
the Austin/Travis County Health and Human Services Department (HHSD) and recommend an injury prevention epidemiologist position at the state level (e.g., Texas Department of State
Health Services (TDSHS)) to analyze traffic-related hospitalizations, injuries, and fatalities. Upgrade hardware and software to
ensure the necessary data analysis can be performed.
Use data to apply for local, state, and federal grant funding (e.g., FHWA/
TxDOT HSIP, US DOT TIGER grants, NHTSA/TxDOT STEP, data improvement, education/marketing (402) grants, FMCSA/TxDOT/DPS MCSAP)
Work with the TxDOT-led working group that creates the CR-3 traffic report
forms to develop a better method of collecting information on the ground
at crash locations.
Continue to coordinate information and analysis of crash sites between
APD and ATD.
Work with TxDOT to link crash data and hospital/trauma registry data.
RO
CE
Enhance data for crash analysis tool (see Action above) to improve crash
query abilities to identify crash patterns (e.g. turning movements that
collided within an intersection)
Create an online, interactive platform for sharing data and analysis between agencies and with the public.
RO
AR
ER
QU
APD, ATD, TxDOT
APD, ATD
HHSD, TxDOT, EMS, and trauma
centers (Seton, Dell Childrens,
Brackenridge)
CITY OF AUSTIN
PE
FA
G
Task Force
CE
| 44
Action
Analysis
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
Develop a data-driven procedure (and enhance tools as necessary) to

prioritize high crash locations based on industry best practices and to
focus limited resources.
Continue analysis of victims and suspects involved in fatal crashes,
including demographics, to target education and enforcement efforts,
including policy changes.
HHSD, Task Force
Continue interdepartmental collaboration of crash reviews with:

1. Crash Review Teams, which review traffic collisions in the field)
and
ATD, APD, PAZ, HHSD
APD, HHSD
DRAFT
2. The Fatality Review Board, an interdepartmental, interagency

group that reviews the characteristics of fatal crashes on a monthly
basis with a focus on identifying potential enforcement and
engineering recommendations.
APD, TxDOT, HHSD
Work with APD, TxDOT, and other agencies to review how crash reports
are prepared and streamline report preparation and analysis. Specifically,
APD, TXDOT, and other agencies should look at how contributing factor
data is recorded in the CRIS/Brazos system and identify recommendations for improved data quality, completeness, categorization, consistency, and access (e.g., update report as information is added, train Police
Officers on how to enter information).
Provide technology and training for officers to better record and preserve APD
crash details and site evidence.
Continue to use crash analysis in planning efforts, including Capital
PAZ, CPO, ATD, HHSD, PWD
Planning Offices Long Range Strategic Planning, CodeNEXT, and corridor
planning. Cross reference crash maps with Local Area Traffic Management (traffic calming) and street reconstruction projects to identify opportunities for safety improvements.
Continue data analysis, including geospatial analysis and mapping. Analysis should include:
Action
18
19
Map
Location
Collision heat maps by

severity and mode, used
to identify enforcement,
engineering, and education hotspot areas
In Vision Zero Action Plan, available online
PAZ, HHSD
High-injury corridors
Map
In Vision Zero Action Plan, available online
www.austintexas.gov/page/vision-zero-maps
DRAFT
PAZ, HHSD
20 Top Contributing Factors drafts available online
PAZ, HHSD
21 Crash rate, including
PAZ, HHSD
Maps, which look at

dangerous behaviors
leading to injury and
fatal crashes
22
rate by mode
Temporal maps (e.g.,
time of day, day of week,
time of year)
Safety Improvement Plan
PAZ, HHSD
23 Epidemiological/demo-
24
25
26
27
28
graphic maps (e.g., age,

race, income of victims
and others involved in
crash)
Thorough analysis of
crash factors at hotspots
Land Use analysis (land
use/trip generators,
transit ridership & bus
stops, population density, & people experiencing homelessness (e.g.,
transitional housing,
wrap-around services)
Urban Design analysis
(block lengths, intersection density, sidewalks,
setbacks, bike lanes,
driveway cuts, travel
speeds)
Crashes by Police District Maps
Crashes by Council District Maps
HHSD, PAZ, APD
Safety Improvement Plan
ATD
CodeNEXT
PAZ, HHSD
CodeNEXT
PAZ, HHSD
In Vision Zero Action Plan, available online,
PAZ
www.austintexas.gov/page/vision-zero-maps
CITY OF AUSTIN
| 46
Action
29
30
31
Analysis of crashes in
school zones
EMS response time +
congestion + Star Flights
Hit and runs with FARS
variables/factors+
charges +EMS data?
PAZ, HHSD
EMS?
APD, HHSD, EMS?
DRAFT
Evaluation
32
33
34
35
36
Develop metrics to measure the success of existing and new programs

that affect transportation safety, including evaluating changes in injury
and fatal crash averages (i.e., 3 and 5 year averages to inform effectiveness for enforcement, engineered street improvements, and educational
efforts).
Evaluate the effectiveness of education, enforcement, and engineering
and update data and crash maps in subsequent action plans.
Conduct before/after studies of safety improvements to assess effectiveness and refine future applications.
Publicize and review crash analysis methodologies to improve the quality,
consistency and transparency of analysis across agencies.
HHSD, Task Force
Task Force
ATD
HHSD, Task Force
Share data across City departments, with agencies, and with the public.
CTM, APD, ATD, HHSD, Task Force
Publish crash and safety data on a regular basis in user-friendly format(s).
Develop an online crash mapping/data sharing platform.
18
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81
High Injury & Death Roadways (2010-2014)
by Council District
The high injury and death road network shows the road segments within Austin's full-purpose jurisdiction that
have the greatest concentration of incapacitating injuries & deaths.
The high injury and death roads were mapped by creating a spatial join between the roadway network feature
and points where incapacitating injuries and deaths have occurred.
Roads with incapacitating injury or fatal crashes

fewer number of
fatal or
incapacitating
crashes
Deaths by mode
greater number
of fatal or
incapacitating
crashes
CITY OF AUSTIN
driving (145)
motorcycle (59)
walking (91)
biking (7)
| 48
DRAFT
4
Develop a Vision Zero Program: The City of
Austin will staff and fund a program dedicated
to improved transportation safety, with a focus
on enforcement, engineering/design, and
education.
City departments, county,
state, and federal agencies,
and community groups. Work
with Crossroads Coalition to
coordinate and combine efforts.
Timeline for
implementation: ongoing;
meet quarterly or more
frequently
The Austin City Council directed the City Manager to convene a Vision
Zero Task Force in November 2014 to make recommendations to
improve traffic safety in Austin. The Vision Zero Task Force has brought
together different City departments, state and federal agencies,
institutions, and community groups to provide a holistic approach to
traffic safety. This forum has already led to increased collaboration and
innovative ideas and actions.
Goal: To resource and implement the Vision Zero Action Plan through
a Vision Zero Program administered by the City of Austin and advised
by a permanent Vision Zero Task Force.
DRAFT
Vision Zero Program and Task Force
The City of Austin will establish a Vision Zero Program that provides the
necessary professional staff, expertise and funding to carry out the actions identified in the Vision Zero Action Plan. Vision Zero Program staff
will convene the Vision Zero Task Force to ensure the continued interdepartmental, interagency, and community coordination necessary to
work towards Austins goal of zero deaths and serious injuries by 2025.
The Task Force will continue to be an interagency and interdepartmental group with representation from key community groups, including advocates for the most vulnerable road users. Representatives from the
pedestrian, bicycling, and motorcycling groups; minority communities
including the African American and Spanish-speaking communities;
the homeless population and homeless services; and advocates for
older adults, people with disabilities, and social workers who work with
at-risk communities will work with government members of the Task
Force to ensure their constituents concerns and needs are addressed.
An Executive Committee composed of the Planning and Zoning, Transportation, Police, Health and Human Services, Public Works, EMS, Law,
and Fire departments will oversee and coordinate implementation of
City actions in the Action Plan.
Member city departments and agencies will implement the actions
within this Action Plan and make regular reports to the Task Force. City
staff will produce an annual Vision Zero Report Card, to be reviewed
by the Task Force and the City Council, evaluating the effectiveness of
actions and tracking implementation progress.
CITY OF AUSTIN
| 50
Improper movements,
e.g. lane changing,
backing, or turning
DRAFT
Driver inattention
or distraction
29%
20%
102 people
75%
died in traffic in 2015
54%
21%
all other
contributing
factors
In crashes with a recorded

contributing factor,
6 behaviors contributed to
Failure to yield
right of way
79%
of fatal or incapacitating
crashes
Speed
15%
Alcohol + drugs
2%
Failure to stop
STOP
The Report Card will track fatal and incapacitating injury crashes
for each year and compare them over time.
It will look at whether the top factors included in this Action Plan
have moved up or down.
Annual Vision Zero Report

Card
The report card will track:
The annual Vision Zero Report Card will track the

Citys progress toward the goal of zero deaths and
serious injuries by 2025 and inform changes and
new actions in subsequent Action Plans. This Report
Card will look at the safety improvements, enforcement operations, and education and outreach
accomplished, but will focus on the metrics that
matter: are our streets getting safer?
fatal and incapacitating injury crashes by mode;
total fatal and incapacitating injury crashes;
fatal and incapacitating injury crashes at

hotspot locations with targeted interventions; and
fatal and incapacitating injury crashes involving
top contributing factors.
These metrics will guide implementation efforts in
the second year of the Action Plan and inform actions included in subsequent Action Plans.
Austin Total Traffic Deaths by Year
DRAFT
102
100
90
62
40
54
2008
49
59
2007
62
60
64
50
75
rolling 3-year avg
61
60
78
70
73
Traffic Deaths
80
30
20
10
2004
2005
2006
2009
2010
2011
2012
2013
2014
2015
Year
Metrics that matter: the Report Card will look at whether total deaths and incapacitating injuries are changing over time.
Task Force Meeting

Frequency & Work Plan
The Task Force will continue to meet regularly to
work with agencies and representatives of select
community constituencies to share, use, and evaluate data, resources, and partnerships. The Task
Force will continue to review analysis of crash and
injury data and research best practices to inform
implementation (engineering, enforcement and education) of the Action Plan and updates to the Action
Plan. To ensure transparency and accountability, the
Task Force will monitor, evaluate, and review updates on the progress of the implementation of the
The Task Force member departments and agencies will work on additional mapping and analysis
(Critical Action #3) to inform an educational media
campaign (Critical Action #2), focus on key enforcement and engineering initiatives that target the
top contributing factors of serious and fatal injury
collisions (Critical Action #1).
CITY OF AUSTIN
| 52
DRAFT
Conclusion
Places that have implemented Vision Zero have
seen improvements in transportation safety.
Reaching zero will not be easy, but it is achievable.
In the US, the cities of Ann Arbor, Michigan, Lakewood, Washington, El Monte, California, and Provo,
Utah have all had at least one year without traffic
deaths20. These cities are smaller than Austin, but
prove that traffic deaths are not inevitable.
A goal of zero deaths and serious injuries by 2025 is

simple and straightforward, but getting there will not
be easy. It will take fresh approaches to education,
enforcement, and engineering, policy and regulatory
changes, new ways of thinking about land use and
connectivity, and careful evaluation. It will take all
Austinites.
Pledge
DRAFT
The Vision Zero Action Plan provides an initial set of actions for the City, other agencies, and community
partners as we work toward our goal of preventing serious traffic injuries and deaths. Many of these injuries
and deaths are the result of a combination of factors, including historical land use patterns and road designs
designed to move motor vehicles quickly21 and dangerous behaviors.
We recognize that improving traffic safety will only occur through a coordinated, holistic approach. Changes
to land use patterns and street design will take time and money to transform, but we must start today. Collecting and analyzing data is the cornerstone of our approach: more robust data and analyzing and sharing
that data can help us direct resources where they are most needed. Evaluation of our actions will help us
continue to hone in our goal of eliminating serious injuries and deaths.
We must also prioritize enforcement where it can have the greatest effect immediately. Our police are our
frontline for preventing injuries and deaths. It is critical that we target enforcement at fatal and serious injury
crash hotspot locations and on top dangerous behaviors.
Traffic deaths and injuries are preventable; therefore, none are acceptable. We commit the following City
departments and undersigned agencies to continuing the work of the Vision Zero Task Force as we strive
toward eliminating serious injuries and deaths by 2025.
_______________________________
_______________________________
Mayor, City of Austin
City Manager, City of Austin
_______________________________
_______________________________
Capitol Metro
Texas Department of Transportation,

Austin District
_______________________________
_______________________________
Federal Highway Administration, Texas

Division
Travis County District Attorneys Office
CITY OF AUSTIN
| 54
Glossary
CR-3
Texas Peace Officers Crash Report form, which is filled out by an officer at the scene of a crash and filed with
TXDOT.
CRIS
Crash Records Information System, the reporting and analysis system used by TXDOT for tracking crashes.
DRAFT
MCSAP Motor Carrier Safety Assistance Program, a federal grant matching program focused on commercial vehicle
safety improvements.
NHTSA National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, a part of the federal Department of Transportation.
STEP
Selective Traffic Enforcement Program, a grant whichs pay for overtime activities by local law enforcement to
reduce the incidence of speeding, driving while intoxicated, failure to use occupant restraint systems, and intersection traffic control violations.
TIGER Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery, a discretionary grant program passed as part of the
American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009.
References
1
World Resources Institute, Cities Safer by Design, http://www.wri.org/sites/default/files/CitiesSaferByDesign_final.pdf
New York City, April 2015, Vision Zero: One Year Report, http://www.nyc.gov/html/visionzero/assets/downloads/pdf/
vision-zero-1-year-report.pdf
DRAFT
http://www.nhtsa.gov/About+NHTSA/Press+Releases/2014/traffic-deaths-decline-in-2013
http://www.heraldextra.com/news/local/central/provo/provo-achieves-vision-zero-one-of-largest-cities-to-have/article_f639586f-cca6-52de-8cbb-5971d7ea2f7e.html. 115 other US cities and towns over 50,000 people also went at
least one year with no deaths: http://www.dekra-vision-zero.com/map/
Colin Pope, June 2012, Austin Business Journal
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, 2013, http://www-nrd.nhtsa.dot.gov/Pubs/812139.pdf
Census, American Community Survey
10
Ewing, Schieber, and Zegeer, 2003, Urban sprawl as a risk factor in motor vehicle occupant and pedestrian fatalities,
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1448007/
11
http://www.governing.com/topics/public-justice-safety/gov-pedestrian-deaths-analysis.html
12
Austin American Statesman, http://projects.statesman.com/news/homeless-deaths/index.html
13
Austin Police Department
14
Sidewalks cost an average of $24.14 per square foot. The City of Austin has completed half of its sidewalk network
(about 2,360 miles) and needs an additional 2,270 miles. It will take almost 200 years to complete the network based
on current funding levels.
15
Pedestrian hybrid beacons cost $75,000 each. http://austintexas.gov/page/pedestrian-hybrid-beacons
16
Elvik, R, et al, 2004, Speed and Road Accidents, an evaluation of the Power Model, TOI, Norway, http://www.trg.dk/
elvik/740-2004.pdf
17
http://www.distraction.gov/stats-research-laws/facts-and-statistics.html
18
http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/mm6210a1.htm?s_cid=mm6210a1_w
19
http://www.distraction.gov/downloads/pdfs/a-comparison-of-the-cell-phone-driver-and-the-drunk-driver.pdf
20
http://www.dekra-vision-zero.com/map/
21
US Government Accountability Office, Pedestrian and Cyclists: Cities, States, and DOT are Implementing Actions to
Improve Safety, http://www.gao.gov/assets/680/673782.pdf and Ewing, R. et al., 2003, Urban sprawl as a risk factor
in motor vehicle occupant and pedestrian fatalities, http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1448007/
CITY OF AUSTIN
| 56

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20162018

i | VISION ZERO ACTION PLAN

iii | VISION ZERO ACTION PLAN

Traffic safety solutions must be addressed holistically, through:

2) Public Education: Create a targeted public education

campaign to raise awareness of the severity of the

v | VISION ZERO ACTION PLAN

Community Groups (Commissions, Councils, Committees, Coalitions)

ADA Access and Sidewalk Task Force

ATX Safer Streets

Bicycle Advisory Council

Community Advancement Network

Ending Community Homelessness Coalition (ECHO)

Mothers against Drunk Driving (MADD)

Public Safety Commission (PSC)

Mayors Committee for People with

Urban Transportation Commission (UTC)

Health and Human Services Department (HHSD)

Public Works Department (PWD)

Austin-Travis County EMS

Texas A&M Transportation Institute (TTI)

Travis County District Attorneys Office

Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission

University of Texas Center for

Federal Highway Administration, Texas

Texas Department of Transportation,

Urban Land Institute (ULI)

Concentration of injuries & deaths

Injuries & Deaths: All Modes

Walter E. Long Lake

AC Lady Bird Lake

Austin Needs Vision Zero

A Need for Safer Streets

Austins Vision for Safer Streets

Vision Zeros goal is simple: zero traffic

The Austin City Council charged the Vision Zero Task

1 | VISION ZERO ACTION PLAN

Vision Zeros goal is simple: zero traffic deaths and

Vision Zero ATX organized a vigil at Austin City Hall on September

Successes will be incremental and changes in and use

traveling 20 mph will survive, but at just 40 mph, those

Zero deaths and serious injuries is

3 | VISION ZERO ACTION PLAN

ministration (FHWA) have adopted Vision Zero as a

Traffic deaths and injuries are a

People will make mistakes; the

Safety is the primary consideration in

Traffic safety solutions must be

Education and culture change,

Enforcement and prosecution, and

Land use and transportation

In Utah, which has development patterns more

deaths is possible; in 2011 not a single person died

San Francisco (2014)

San Jose (2015)

The Vision Zero Network, a collaborative

5 | VISION ZERO ACTION PLAN

traffic deaths down

New York City (2014)

Austin Needs Vision Zero

These deaths and injuries are more than

7 | VISION ZERO ACTION PLAN

Transportation Fatalities by Mode vs. Avg. Gas Price

Gas Price in 2013$