The Safe, Accountable, Flexible, Efficient Transportation Equity Act--A Legacy for Users (SAFETEA-LU) requires Departments of Transportation to develop a strategic highway safety plan (SHSP) for their state, in consultation with a number of stakeholders. The Plan is to be approved by the Governor or a responsible state agency. This requirement of SAFETEA-LU is an important policy statement, sending the strong message that safety must be addressed at a statewide level, with each state's safety partners working together to establish goals, assess challenge areas, develop strategies, and leverage resources and expertise to implement the strategies that will most positively impact safety. The requirement of a SHSP is more about building and maintaining partnerships than it is about following a process. It is about strong leadership to define and address a major public health issue facing our country--the loss of over 42,000 Americans each year on our roadways. It is also about the need for making informed, strategic decisions based on current and accurate crash data. Many of the common elements of a successful safety program have been incorporated into the U.S. DOT guidance document for the development of SHSPs. Key, foundational aspects of successful programs include: senior leadership awareness of the issue, and support for addressing the issue; having a champion who can assure the partners engage and that the plan is not only developed, but also implemented; having timely and accurate data from which to make sound decisions; and, having a mechanism to assess the strategies, evaluate the overall success of the program, and make adjustments as necessary. The FHWA is also developing guidance on the relationship of the SHSP process with the overall transportation planning process. It is important that safety be addressed in the context of a state's overall transportation program, to assure decision makers understand the significance of the issue with respect to other program needs.
Samenvatting