GOVERNORS HIGHWAY SAFETY ASSOCIATION RESEARCH COMMITTEE^*

CO-CHAIRS

Karson James

Wyoming Department of Transportation

Tim Kerns

Maryland Motor Vehicle Administration

MEMBERS

Amy Boggs

West Virginia Governorʼs Highway Safety Program

Joel Brisson

Tennessee Highway Safety Office

Mark Ezzell

North Carolina Governorʼs Highway Safety Program

Brian Harmon

Minnesota Department of Public Safety

Lissette Morgan

Arizona Governorʼs Office of Highway Safety

Flavia Pereira

Connecticut Department of Transportation

Max Tyler Roberts

Washington Traffic Safety Commission

Emily Thomas

South Carolina Office of Highway Safety and Justice Programs

___________________________

^* Membership as of November 2025.

TRANSPORTATION RESEARCH BOARD 2025 EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE^*

OFFICERS

Chair: Leslie S. Richards, Professor of Practice, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia

Vice Chair: Joel M. Jundt, Secretary of Transportation, South Dakota Department of Transportation, Pierre

Executive Director: Victoria Sheehan, Transportation Research Board, Washington, DC

MEMBERS

James F. Albaugh, President and CEO, The Boeing Company (retired), Scottsdale, AZ

Carlos M. Braceras, Executive Director, Utah Department of Transportation, Salt Lake City

Douglas C. Ceva, Vice President, Customer Lead Solutions, Prologis, Inc., Jupiter, FL

Nancy Daubenberger, Commissioner of Transportation, Minnesota Department of Transportation, St. Paul

Marie Therese Dominguez, Commissioner, New York State Department of Transportation, Albany

Garrett Eucalitto, Commissioner, Connecticut Department of Transportation, Newington

Andrew Fremier, Executive Director, Metropolitan Transportation Commission, San Francisco, CA

Martha Grabowski, Professor Emerita, Information Systems, Le Moyne College, Madden College of Business and Economics, Cazenovia, NY

Randell Iwasaki, President and CEO, Iwasaki Consulting Services, Walnut Creek, CA

Carol A. Lewis, Professor, Transportation Studies, Texas Southern University, Houston

Scott C. Marler, Director, Iowa Department of Transportation, Ames

Ricardo Martinez, Adjunct Professor of Emergency Medicine, Emory University School of Medicine, Decatur, GA

Russell McMurry, Commissioner, Georgia Department of Transportation, Atlanta

Craig E. Philip, Research Professor and Director, VECTOR, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN

Steward T.A. Pickett, Distinguished Senior Scientist, Cary Institute of Ecosystem Studies, Millbrook, NY

Susan A. Shaheen, Professor and Co-Director, Transportation Sustainability Research Center, University of California, Berkeley

Marc Williams, Executive Director, Texas Department of Transportation, Austin

EX OFFICIO MEMBERS

Derek Barrs, Administrator, Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, Washington, DC

Bryan Bedford, Administrator, Federal Aviation Administration, Washington, DC

Michael R. Berube, Deputy Assistant Secretary for Sustainable Transportation, U.S. Department of Energy, Washington, DC

Steven G. Bradbury, Deputy Secretary, U.S. Department of Transportation, Washington, DC

Steven Cliff, Executive Officer, California Air Resources Board, Sacramento

Drew Feeley, Acting Administrator, Federal Railroad Administration, Washington, DC

David Fink, Administrator, Federal Railroad Administration, Washington, DC

LeRoy Gishi, Chief, Division of Transportation, Bureau of Indian Affairs, U.S. Department of the Interior, Germantown, MD

Firas Ibrahim, Director, Office of Research, Development, and Technology, Office of the Assistant Secretary for Research and Technology (OST-R), Washington, DC

Jason Kelly, Deputy Commanding General for Civil Works and Emergency Operations, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Washington, DC

Sandra Knight, President, WaterWonks, LLC, Washington, DC

Sean McMaster, Administrator, Federal Highway Administration, Washington, DC

Marcus J. Molinaro, Administrator, Federal Transit Administration, Washington, DC

Jonathan Morrison, Administrator, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, Washington, DC

Niloo Parvinashtiani, Engineer, Mobility Consultant Solutions, Iteris Inc., Fairfax, VA, and Chair, TRB Young Participants Council

Paul Roberti, Administrator, Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration, Washington, DC

Karl Simon, Director, Transportation and Climate Division, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Washington, DC

Paul P. Skoutelas, President and CEO, American Public Transportation Association, Washington, DC

Jim Tymon, Executive Director, American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials, Washington, DC

Sang Yi, Acting Administrator, U.S. Maritime Administration, Washington, DC

___________________________

^* Membership as of November 2025.

BEHAVIORAL TRAFFIC SAFETY COOPERATIVE RESEARCH PROGRAM

BTSCRP RESEARCH REPORT 17

Selecting Communication Channels to Deliver Traffic Safety Messaging

A GUIDE

Laurel Glenn

Tammy Trimble

Virginia Tech Transportation Institute,

Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University

Blacksburg, VA

Christopher LaRose

Neha Trivedi

NORC at the University of Chicago

Chicago, IL

John Tedesco

School of Communication,

Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University

Blacksburg, VA

Subscriber Categories

Pedestrians and Bicyclists • Operations and Traffic Management • Safety and Human Factors

Research sponsored by the Governors Highway Safety Association and National Highway Traffic Safety Administration

2026

BEHAVIORAL TRAFFIC SAFETY COOPERATIVE RESEARCH PROGRAM

Since the widespread introduction of motor vehicles more than a century ago, crashes involving their operation remain a significant public health concern. While there have been enormous improvements in highway design and construction, as well as motor vehicle safety, which have been instrumental in lowering the rate of crashes per million miles in the United States, more than 35,000 people die every year in motor vehicle crashes. In far too many cases, the root causes of the crashes are the unsafe behaviors of motor vehicle operators, cyclists, and pedestrians. Understanding human behaviors and developing effective countermeasures to unsafe ones is difficult and remains a major weakness in our traffic safety efforts.

The Behavioral Traffic Safety Cooperative Research Program (BTSCRP) develops practical solutions to save lives, prevent injuries, and reduce costs of road traffic crashes associated with unsafe behaviors. BTSCRP is a forum for coordinated and collaborative research efforts. It is managed by the Transportation Research Board (TRB) under the direction and oversight of the Governors Highway Safety Association (GHSA) with funding provided by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). Funding for the program was originally established in Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century (MAP-21), Subsection 402(c), which created the National Cooperative Research and Evaluation Program (NCREP). Fixing Americaʼs Surface Transportation (FAST) Act continued the program. In 2017, GHSA entered into an agreement with TRB to manage the research activities, with the program name changed to Behavioral Traffic Safety Cooperative Research Program. The GHSA Executive Board serves as the governing board for the BTSCRP. The Board consists of officers, representatives of the 10 NHTSA regions, and committee and task force chairs. The Research Committee Chair appoints committee members who recommend projects for funding and provide oversight for the activities of BTSCRP. Its ultimate goal is to oversee a quality research program that is committed to addressing research issues facing State Highway Safety Offices. The Executive Board meets annually to approve research projects. Each selected project is assigned to a panel, appointed by TRB, which provides technical guidance and counsel throughout the life of the project. The majority of panel members represent the intended users of the research projects and have an important role in helping to implement the results. BTSCRP produces a series of research reports and other products such as guidebooks for practitioners. Primary emphasis is placed on disseminating BTSCRP results to the intended users of the research: State Highway Safety Offices and their constituents.

BTSCRP RESEARCH REPORT 17

Project BTS-22
ISSN 2766-5976 (Print)
ISSN 2766-5984 (Online)
ISBN 978-0-309-60184-9
Library of Congress Control Number 2026930197

© 2026 by the National Academy of Sciences. National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine and the graphical logo are trademarks of the National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.

COPYRIGHT INFORMATION

Authors herein are responsible for the originality and accuracy of their materials and for obtaining written permissions from publishers or persons who own the copyright to any previously published or copyrighted material used herein.

The National Academy of Sciences (NAS) grants permission to reproduce written material in this publication for classroom and non-commercial purposes subject to the rights of any third parties and appropriate attribution. Permission is given with the understanding that none of the material will be used to imply NAS, TRB, AASHTO, APTA, FAA, FHWA, FTA, GHSA, or NHTSA endorsement of a particular product, method, or practice. For other uses of the written material, users must request permission from the National Academies Press.

NOTICE

The research report was reviewed by the technical panel and accepted for publication according to procedures established and overseen by the Transportation Research Board and approved by the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine.

This material is based upon work sponsored by the Governors Highway Safety Association in cooperation with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration under Agreement No. DTNH2216H00018 or 693JJ92250010. Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed or implied in this document are those of the researchers who performed the research and are not necessarily those of the Transportation Research Board; the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine; or the program sponsors.

The Transportation Research Board does not develop, issue, or publish standards or specifications. The Transportation Research Board manages applied research projects which provide the scientific foundation that may be used by Transportation Research Board sponsors, industry associations, or other organizations as the basis for revised practices, procedures, or specifications.

The Transportation Research Board; the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine; and the sponsors of the Behavioral Traffic Safety Cooperative Research Program do not endorse products or manufacturers. Trade or manufacturersʼ names or logos appear herein solely because they are considered essential to the object of the report.

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BEHAVIORAL TRAFFIC SAFETY COOPERATIVE RESEARCH PROGRAM

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Learn more about the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine at www.nationalacademies.org.

The Transportation Research Board is one of four centers of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. The mission of the Transportation Research Board is to mobilize expertise, experience, and knowledge to anticipate and solve complex transportation-related challenges. The Board's varied activities annually engage more than 5,500 engineers, scientists, and other transportation researchers and practitioners from the public and private sectors and academia, all of whom contribute their expertise in the public interest. The program is supported by state departments of transportation, federal agencies including component administrations of the U.S. Department of Transportation, and other organizations and individuals interested in the development of transportation.

Learn more about the Transportation Research Board at www.TRB.org.

COOPERATIVE RESEARCH PROGRAMS

CRP STAFF FOR BTSCRP RESEARCH REPORT 17

Monique R. Evans, Director, Cooperative Research Programs

Waseem Dekelbab, Deputy Director, Cooperative Research Programs

Richard A. Retting, Acting Manager, Behavioral Traffic Safety Cooperative Research Program

Tijhuana Stapleton, Senior Program Assistant

Natalie Barnes, Director of Publications

Brian Haefs, Associate Director of Publications

Claire Aelion-Moss, Editor

BTSCRP PROJECT BTS-22 PANEL

Anne Phillips, Just Cities Collective, Durham, NC (Chair)

Mark Ezzell, North Carolina Department of Transportation, Raleigh, NC

Ragina Ali, AAA Mid-Atlantic, Abingdon, MD

Joseph Thomas Cristalli Jr., Connecticut Department of Transportation, Newington, CT

Shannon Grabow, Minnesota DPS-Office of Traffic Safety, Saint Paul, MN

Anna Levendusky, Maryland Highway Safety Office, Glen Burnie, MD

Laura Sonderup, Heinrich Marketing, Inc., Denver, CO

Charles Territo, Scottsdale, AZ

Christine Watson, NHTSA Liaison

Bernardo B. Kleiner, TRB Liaison

AUTHOR ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

This research was performed under BTSCRP Project 22 by the Virginia Tech Transportation Institute (VTTI) with support from NORC at the University of Chicago and the School of Communication at Virginia Tech. Dr. Tammy Trimble, research scientist in the Division of Data & Analytics, was the project director and principal investigator. The other VTTI author of this report is Laurel Glenn, research associate, Division of Data & Analytics. The NORC researchers include Dr. Christopher La Rose, senior research scientist in public health, and Dr. Neha Trivedi, research scientist in public health. Dr. John Tedesco, director of the School of Communication at Virginia Tech, served as a consultant.

FOREWORD

By Richard Retting
Staff Officer
Transportation Research Board

BTSCRP Research Report 17: Selecting Communication Channels to Deliver Traffic Safety Messaging: A Guide provides guidelines for delivering effective behavioral traffic safety messaging, including information on how delivery methods impact various audiences. The report evaluated a variety of traditional and innovative behavioral traffic safety campaigns to identify noteworthy practices and cost-effective approaches. The research included case examples from several state highway safety offices (SHSOs) and a range of media strategies. This report will be of interest to SHSOs and other stakeholders concerned with delivering effective behavioral traffic safety messaging.

Behavioral traffic safety messaging is intended to inform, persuade, and motivate specific groups of road users to modify their risky behaviors with the goal of improving road safety and reducing the number of traffic-related injuries and fatalities. To reach specific road users and influence unsafe behaviors, behavioral traffic safety messages must be developed for and adapted to the needs of specific audiences in multiple locations.

SHSOs are routinely contacted by media companies that offer various ways to share traffic safety messaging with the motoring public. Common strategies include print, broadcast, digital, out-of-home, social, experiential, and partner cobranding. Little is known about the effectiveness of such messaging, whether one form is better than others, or which audiences might be most impacted by each form of messaging.

Under BTSCRP Project BTS-22, “Guidelines for Selecting Communication Channels to Deliver Traffic Safety Messaging,” Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University was asked to develop guidelines on delivering effective behavioral traffic safety messaging and how different delivery methods impact various audiences. To support this deliverable, the research team was asked to assess a variety of traditional and innovative behavioral traffic safety campaigns to identify noteworthy practices and cost-effective approaches, and to prepare case examples.

In addition to this report, the following deliverables are available on the National Academies Press website (nap.nationalacademies.org) by searching for BTSCRP Research Report 17: Selecting Communication Channels to Deliver Traffic Safety Messaging: A Guide:

• campaign matrix (Excel file)
• conduct of research report documenting the entire research effort
• technical memorandum on implementation of research findings
• technical memorandum on research limitations

CONTENTS

Chapter 1 Introduction

Background

Target Audience

Overview

Chapter 2 Current State of the Practice

Chapter 3 Notable Practices from SHSO Discussions

Campaign Assets

Expanding Audience Engagement and Partnerships

Chapter 4 Challenges in Creating a Successful Traffic Safety Campaign

Infrastructure Challenges

Data/Evaluation Challenges

Messaging Challenges

Chapter 5 Methods for Measuring and Assessing Exposure and Behavior Change

Established Methods

Emerging Measures

Chapter 6 Key Takeaways for Delivering Effective Behavioral Traffic Safety Messaging

Focus Messaging on Consequences

Add Explicit Calls to Action

Use Consistent and Appealing Branding

Align Audiences and Channels

Improve Data Reporting

Cross-Cutting Themes and Benefits

Additional Resources

References