Planning for Sustainable Safety: Applying Emerging Insights for Better Safety Strategies - 11 October 2023

In contrast, traffic speed reductions, TDM and Smart Growth policies improve travel options and reduce total vehicle travel, which increases safety and helps achieve most other goals, and so are win-win solutions. [...] Analysis of Traffic Safety and Emission Reduction Plans This section evaluates the degree that typical traffic safety and emission reduction plans reflect sustainable traffic safety principles. [...] Similarly, most emission reduction plans primarily encourage cleaner (e.g., hybrid and electric) vehicles, with little consideration of the additional vehicle travel and crashes they are likely to induce, and the traffic safety benefits of vehicle travel reduction strategies. [...] More comprehensive analysis of traffic safety impacts tends to reduce emphasis on targetted traffic safety strategies and alternative fuels, and increase emphasis on policies that reduce total vehicle travel. [...] This research indicates that traffic safety is one of the largest benefits of vehicle travel reductions, and vehicle travel reductions are among the most cost-effective traffic safety strategies.