Applying the Safe System Approach to Transportation Planning, Design, and Operations (2025)
Chapter: All Safety Practice Rankings (listed from most feasible and impactful to least)
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Suggested Citation:
"All Safety Practice Rankings (listed from most feasible and impactful to least)." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2025. Applying the Safe System Approach to Transportation Planning, Design, and Operations. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press.
doi: 10.17226/29148.
All Safety Practice Rankings (listed from most feasible and impactful to least)
Table 12. Policy practice feasibility and impact scores (n = 85).
| Practice | Feasibility | Impact | Category |
|---|---|---|---|
| Installing leading pedestrian intervals with right-turn-on-red restrictions in areas with high pedestrian activity. | 1.078 | 0.385 | High Feasibility/Moderate Impact |
| Updating NHTSA’s NCAP to include pedestrian detection and collision avoidance safety tests. | 0.604 | 0.403 | Moderate Feasibility/Moderate Impact |
| Requiring alcohol ignition interlocks installed for all drivers convicted of DUI. | 0.501 | 0.293 | Moderate Feasibility/Moderate Impact |
| Developing policies requiring forward- and near-side-facing sensors on heavy vehicles to detect pedestrians and cyclists. | 0.337 | 0.324 | Moderate Feasibility/Moderate Impact |
| Setting posted speed limits based on harm minimization principles, road function, and severe crash types rather than an 85th percentile rule. | 0.290 | 0.097 | Moderate Feasibility/Moderate Impact |
| Instituting or enforcing a statewide primary enforcement seat belt use law. | 0.169 | 0.179 | Moderate Feasibility/Moderate Impact |
| Implementing speed safety cameras (automated speed enforcement) that use revenues to improve safety. | –0.259 | 0.459 | Low Feasibility/Moderate Impact |
| Instituting or enforcing a statewide universal motorcycle helmet law, which would require all motorcyclists to wear US DOT compliant helmets, regardless of the rider’s age or experience. | –0.100 | 0.197 | Low Feasibility/Moderate Impact |
| Installing seat belt interlocks in vehicles. | –0.055 | 0.150 | Low Feasibility/Moderate Impact |
| Implementing red-light camera enforcement that uses revenues to fund safety infrastructure. | –0.046 | 0.133 | Low Feasibility/Moderate Impact |
| Installing speed governors in all municipal fleet vehicles. | 0.592 | –0.712 | Moderate Feasibility/Low Impact |
| Extending GDL requirements to include all novice drivers regardless of age. | 0.136 | –0.258 | Moderate Feasibility/Low Impact |
| Establishing a default speed limit of 20 mph or lower in every business or residential district. | –0.062 | –0.271 | Low Feasibility/Low Impact |
| Instituting immediate administrative license revocation or suspension (ALR/ALS) for alcohol- and drug-impaired driving offenses. | –0.312 | –0.085 | Low Feasibility/Low Impact |
| Lowering the blood alcohol concentration (BAC) limit for driving from 0.08 to 0.05. | –0.146 | –0.463 | Low Feasibility/Low Impact |
| Requiring location-based speed limiters in all commercial and private vehicles in areas with high pedestrian activity. | –0.796 | 0.080 | Low Feasibility/Moderate Impact |
| Instituting a driver license renewal program that requires passing an on-road driving test every 5–10 years. | –0.477 | –0.295 | Low Feasibility/Low Impact |
| Promoting the installation of technology in private automobiles that records drivers’ distraction, drowsiness, and other forms of impairment. | –0.788 | –0.133 | Low Feasibility/Low Impact |
Suggested Citation:
"All Safety Practice Rankings (listed from most feasible and impactful to least)." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2025. Applying the Safe System Approach to Transportation Planning, Design, and Operations. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press.
doi: 10.17226/29148.
| Practice | Feasibility | Impact | Category |
|---|---|---|---|
| Establishing maximums in vehicle size (in terms of width, length, height, weight) permitted in areas with high pedestrian activity. | –0.666 | –0.486 | Low Feasibility/Low Impact |
Table 13. Planning practice feasibility and impact scores (n = 60).
| Practice | Feasibility | Impact | Category |
|---|---|---|---|
| Incorporating road safety audits in project scoping/planning phases. | 0.724 | 0.302 | Moderate Feasibility/Moderate Impact |
| Prioritizing injury risk-based (systemic) safety assessments over crash “hot spot” or “black spot” approaches. | 0.225 | 0.417 | Moderate Feasibility/Moderate Impact |
| Communicating with communities not previously involved with decision-making to learn about their safety issues and concerns on a routine basis (annually, quarterly). | 0.402 | 0.225 | Moderate Feasibility/Moderate Impact |
| Coordinating with land use planners to align land use and roadway purposes (e.g., deciding whether the road’s purpose is access- or mobility-centered). | 0.052 | 0.257 | Moderate Feasibility/Moderate Impact |
| Simulating the safety effects of land developments and investments in long-range plans. | –0.233 | –0.019 | Low Feasibility/Low Impact |
| Incorporating nontraditional transportation safety data sources [e.g., EMS, hospital, social determinants of health, environmental, and historical (e.g., redlining)] as part of problem identification and project prioritization processes. | –0.307 | –0.012 | Low Feasibility/Low Impact |
| Implementing or expanding car-free zones in areas with high pedestrian activity. | –0.702 | 0.370 | Low Feasibility/Moderate Impact |
| Setting a goal to reduce road deaths by 50% by 2030 in safety plans. | 0.071 | –0.532 | Moderate Feasibility/Low Impact |
| Replacing travel forecasting (“predict and provide”) with backcasting (“decide and provide,” i.e., starting from a vision of desirable travel patterns and working backward to realize the vision). | –0.294 | –0.257 | Low Feasibility/Low Impact |
| Encouraging and facilitating public use of self-reporting (via mobile app or survey) to capture collisions and other events falling outside the scope of traditional crash reporting (e.g., near misses, pedestrian and bicyclist falls). | 0.062 | –0.751 | Moderate Feasibility/Low Impact |
Table 14. Design practice feasibility and impact scores (n = 44).
| Practice | Feasibility | Impact | Category |
|---|---|---|---|
| Improving sight distance at intersections by restricting parking at the corners (daylighting). | 0.972 | 0.296 | Moderate Feasibility/Moderate Impact |
| Installing centerline rumble strips on undivided highways. | 1.010 | 0.225 | High Feasibility/Moderate Impact |
| Installing poles that break away when struck. | 0.882 | 0.111 | Moderate Feasibility/Moderate Impact |
| Installing travel lane reconfigurations (road diets) at multi-lane roads with fewer than 20,000 AADT. | 0.219 | 0.604 | Moderate Feasibility/Moderate Impact |
| Installing edge line rumble strips with bicycle gaps on undivided highways. | 0.726 | –0.442 | Moderate Feasibility/Low Impact |
| Setting default local road travel lane widths to 10 ft. | 0.636 | –0.397 | Moderate Feasibility/Low Impact |
Suggested Citation:
"All Safety Practice Rankings (listed from most feasible and impactful to least)." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2025. Applying the Safe System Approach to Transportation Planning, Design, and Operations. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press.
doi: 10.17226/29148.
| Practice | Feasibility | Impact | Category |
|---|---|---|---|
| Installing right in/right out junctions that only allow vehicles to enter and exit from the right. | 0.161 | 0.064 | Moderate Feasibility/Moderate Impact |
| Installing cable barriers in the medians of rural roads. | 0.223 | –0.206 | Moderate Feasibility/Low Impact |
| Installing cable barriers on the edges of rural roads. | –0.114 | –0.081 | Low Feasibility/Low Impact |
| Installing pedestrian hybrid beacons along arterials with 4+ travel lanes. | –0.134 | –0.142 | Low Feasibility/Low Impact |
| Converting conventional signalized intersections to single-lane roundabouts. | –0.703 | 0.294 | Low Feasibility/Moderate Impact |
| Installing raised pedestrian/bicyclist crossings at driveways, minor street intersections, and midblock transit stop locations. | –0.364 | –0.073 | Low Feasibility/Low Impact |
| Installing permanent barrier protected bike lanes on arterial roads. | –0.869 | 0.280 | Low Feasibility/Moderate Impact |
| Employing people with skills in perceptual psychology to help design “self-explaining” roads. | –0.396 | –0.322 | Low Feasibility/Low Impact |
| Creating “self-explaining” road designs where: local roads have narrow lanes and traffic calming; collector roads have bicycle lanes and safe pedestrian crossings; and arterial roads severely limit access and provide protected bicycle lanes and pedestrian crossings. | –1.142 | 0.196 | Very Low Feasibility/Moderate Impact |
| Providing pedestrian/bicycle bridges or daylit tunnels at intersections. | –1.108 | –0.407 | Very Low Feasibility/Low Impact |
Table 15. Operations and Maintenance practice feasibility and impact scores (n = 33).
| Practice | Feasibility | Impact | Category |
|---|---|---|---|
| Installing leading pedestrian intervals with right-turn-on-red restrictions in areas with high pedestrian activity. | 0.750 | 0.545 | Moderate Feasibility/Moderate Impact |
| Removing roadside objects that pose a danger when impacted upon a lane departure. | 0.291 | 0.597 | Moderate Feasibility/Moderate Impact |
| Including crash risk potential in prioritizations of resurfacing schedules (e.g., prioritizing surfaces with low skid resistance for resurfacing). | 0.418 | 0.327 | Moderate Feasibility/Moderate Impact |
| Providing an exclusive signal phase for pedestrians in areas in high pedestrian volumes (e.g., pedestrian scramble or “Barnes Dance”). | 0.067 | 0.286 | Moderate Feasibility/Moderate Impact |
| Developing joint action plans with emergency services partners to integrate operational planning with emergency services planning. | 0.200 | 0.091 | Moderate Feasibility/Moderate Impact |
| Integrating asset management and crash analyses to determine when roadway conditions have degraded to the point that they are increasing the likelihood/severity of crashes. | 0.062 | 0.155 | Moderate Feasibility/Moderate Impact |
| Improving signal progression on designated routes for emergency vehicles with pre-determined signal linking plans. | 0.134 | 0.039 | Moderate Feasibility/Moderate Impact |
| Providing longer green times for cyclists at shared path crossings. | 0.338 | –0.236 | Moderate Feasibility/Low Impact |
Suggested Citation:
"All Safety Practice Rankings (listed from most feasible and impactful to least)." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2025. Applying the Safe System Approach to Transportation Planning, Design, and Operations. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press.
doi: 10.17226/29148.
| Practice | Feasibility | Impact | Category |
|---|---|---|---|
| Employing an active or passive equipment maintenance and replacement system. | 0.166 | –0.127 | Moderate Feasibility/Low Impact |
| Developing a traffic guidance scheme (TGS) which details the use of specific traffic control devices (e.g., signs, barriers) during crash events. | 0.444 | –0.410 | Moderate Feasibility/Low Impact |
| Keeping a detailed inventory on the condition of the agencies’ transportation assets (e.g., bridges, tunnels, pavements, signs, signals, sidewalks, street furniture, vegetation). | –0.040 | –0.002 | Low Feasibility/Low Impact |
| Routinizing network-comprehensive (including bike and sidewalk networks) winter road clearance operations (e.g., snow and ice clearing, salt spreading where applicable). | 0.025 | –0.073 | Moderate Feasibility/Low Impact |
| Providing extended clearance intervals for passively detected pedestrians at signalized intersections. | –0.046 | –0.053 | Low Feasibility/Low Impact |
| Implementing variable speed limits (VSL) on roads with high pedestrian activity at certain times and high potential for significant pedestrian-motor vehicle conflicts (e.g., school zones). | –0.332 | 0.162 | Low Feasibility/Moderate Impact |
| Incorporating roadway features beyond pavement and safety infrastructure (e.g., drainage features, street furniture, vegetation) into asset management programs. | –0.056 | –0.162 | Low Feasibility/Low Impact |
| Combining passive pedestrian detection and accessible pedestrian signals (APS) to help pedestrians with low vision safely traverse intersections. | –0.236 | 0.008 | Low Feasibility/Moderate Impact |
| Implementing VSL in the vicinity of traffic incidents. | –0.579 | 0.169 | Low Feasibility/Moderate Impact |
| Extending clearance intervals for passively detected cyclists at signalized intersections. | –0.145 | –0.334 | Low Feasibility/Low Impact |
| Implementing Driving Safety Support Systems (DSSSs) to avoid sign and signal violations and collisions. | –0.546 | –0.039 | Low Feasibility/Low Impact |
| Implementing VSL during adverse weather conditions. | –0.346 | –0.372 | Low Feasibility/Low Impact |
| Implementing VSL at nighttime in alcohol-serving districts. | –0.569 | –0.572 | Low Feasibility/Low Impact |
Table 16. Enforcement practice feasibility and impact scores (n = 61).
| Practice | Feasibility | Impact | Category |
|---|---|---|---|
| Instituting immediate administrative license revocation or suspension (ALR/ALS) for alcohol- and drug-impaired driving offenses. | 0.225 | 0.424 | Moderate Feasibility/Moderate Impact |
| Instituting or enforcing a statewide primary enforcement seat belt use law, which would require occupants to wear seatbelts in the both the front and back seats and allow law enforcement officers to ticket occupants for not wearing a seatbelt, without other citable traffic infractions taking place. | 0.204 | 0.426 | Moderate Feasibility/Moderate Impact |
| Instituting high-visibility saturation patrols for alcohol- or drug-impaired driving. | 0.157 | 0.287 | Moderate Feasibility/Moderate Impact |
Suggested Citation:
"All Safety Practice Rankings (listed from most feasible and impactful to least)." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2025. Applying the Safe System Approach to Transportation Planning, Design, and Operations. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press.
doi: 10.17226/29148.
| Practice | Feasibility | Impact | Category |
|---|---|---|---|
| Requiring alcohol ignition interlocks installed for all drivers convicted of DUI. | 0.035 | 0.406 | Moderate Feasibility/Moderate Impact |
| Instituting or enforcing a statewide universal motorcycle helmet law, which would require all motorcyclists to wear US DOT compliant helmets, regardless of the rider’s age or experience. | 0.116 | 0.177 | Moderate Feasibility/Moderate Impact |
| Placing serious crashes in a time- or place-based context when engaging news media partners. | 0.134 | –0.321 | Moderate Feasibility/Low Impact |
| Implementing speed safety cameras (automated speed enforcement) that use revenues to fund safety infrastructure. | –0.170 | –0.061 | Low Feasibility/Low Impact |
| Implementing red-light camera enforcement that uses revenues to improve safety. | –0.222 | –0.169 | Low Feasibility/Low Impact |
| Linking police with EMS/hospital data for persons injured in motor vehicle crashes. | –0.088 | –0.344 | Low Feasibility/Low Impact |
| Forming a task force or community coalition of law enforcement, transportation, public health, members of the community, and other partners to investigate serious crashes and report findings and proposed changes to the public. | –0.340 | –0.127 | Low Feasibility/Low Impact |
| Encouraging and facilitating public use of self-reporting (via mobile app or survey) to capture collisions and other events falling outside the scope of traditional crash reporting (e.g., near misses, pedestrian and bicyclist falls). | –0.051 | –0.698 | Low Feasibility/Low Impact |
Table 17. Post-Crash Response practice feasibility and impact scores (n = 66).
| Practice | Feasibility | Impact | Category |
|---|---|---|---|
| Forming a task force or community coalition of law enforcement, transportation, public health, members of the community, and other partners to investigate serious crashes and report findings and proposed changes to the public. | 0.418 | 0.300 | Moderate Feasibility/Moderate Impact |
| Training law enforcement and transportation staff to coordinate post-crash reporting at crash sites. | 0.332 | 0.153 | Moderate Feasibility/Moderate Impact |
| Developing joint action plans with emergency services partners to integrate operational planning with emergency services planning. | 0.328 | –0.145 | Moderate Feasibility/Low Impact |
| Linking police with EMS/hospital data for persons injured in motor vehicle crashes. | –0.038 | 0.208 | Low Feasibility/Moderate Impact |
| Upgrading analog 911 infrastructure to Next Generation 911 (commonly referred to as NG911) to create a faster, more resilient system that facilitates public reporting to the 911 network. | –0.073 | 0.242 | Low Feasibility/Moderate Impact |
| Placing serious crashes in a time- or place-based context when engaging news media partners. | 0.473 | –0.369 | Moderate Feasibility/Low Impact |
| Establishing a traffic incident management (TIM) system that documents roadway and incident clearance times, as well as secondary crashes. | –0.033 | –0.085 | Low Feasibility/Low Impact |
Suggested Citation:
"All Safety Practice Rankings (listed from most feasible and impactful to least)." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2025. Applying the Safe System Approach to Transportation Planning, Design, and Operations. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press.
doi: 10.17226/29148.
| Practice | Feasibility | Impact | Category |
|---|---|---|---|
| Instituting ACN for vehicle collisions with people walking, cycling, or rolling. | –0.452 | 0.312 | Low Feasibility/Moderate Impact |
| Installing ACN systems on more remote, rural roadways. | –0.335 | 0.137 | Low Feasibility/Moderate Impact |
| Encouraging and facilitating public use of self-reporting (via mobile app or survey) to capture collisions and other events falling outside the scope of traditional crash reporting (e.g., near misses, pedestrian and bicyclist falls). | –0.080 | –0.566 | Low Feasibility/Low Impact |
| Deploying unmanned aerial systems (UAS) to conduct route monitoring, crash incident verification, secondary crash detection, and response vehicle routing to and from the crash site. | –0.540 | –0.187 | Low Feasibility/Low Impact |
Suggested Citation:
"All Safety Practice Rankings (listed from most feasible and impactful to least)." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2025. Applying the Safe System Approach to Transportation Planning, Design, and Operations. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press.
doi: 10.17226/29148.
Suggested Citation:
"All Safety Practice Rankings (listed from most feasible and impactful to least)." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2025. Applying the Safe System Approach to Transportation Planning, Design, and Operations. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press.
doi: 10.17226/29148.
Suggested Citation:
"All Safety Practice Rankings (listed from most feasible and impactful to least)." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2025. Applying the Safe System Approach to Transportation Planning, Design, and Operations. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press.
doi: 10.17226/29148.
Suggested Citation:
"All Safety Practice Rankings (listed from most feasible and impactful to least)." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2025. Applying the Safe System Approach to Transportation Planning, Design, and Operations. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press.
doi: 10.17226/29148.
Suggested Citation:
"All Safety Practice Rankings (listed from most feasible and impactful to least)." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2025. Applying the Safe System Approach to Transportation Planning, Design, and Operations. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press.
doi: 10.17226/29148.
Suggested Citation:
"All Safety Practice Rankings (listed from most feasible and impactful to least)." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2025. Applying the Safe System Approach to Transportation Planning, Design, and Operations. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press.
doi: 10.17226/29148.
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