Webinars | CPBS

Upcoming Webinars

Tuesday, March 18th, 2025 at Noon MDT / 2pm EDT

The Human Case for Fewer Cars in Our Lives

In the planning field, little attention is given to the effects a “low-car” city can have on the human experience at a psychological and sociological level. Studies are beginning to surface that indicate the impact that external factors—such as sound—can have on our stress and anxiety levels, or how the systematic dismantling of freedom and autonomy for children and the elderly to travel through their cities is causing isolation and dependency.

Learn from Melissa and Chris Bruntlett why these investments in improving the built environment are about more than just getting from place to place more easily and comfortably. It also involves helping decision makers and advocates better understand and communicate the human impacts of low-car cities: lower anxiety and stress, increased independence, social autonomy, inclusion, and improved mental and physical wellbeing.

Wednesday, March 26th, 2025 at Noon MDT / 2pm EDT

Edge Lane Roads – U.S. Experience and Future Directions

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With decades of use in many other countries, the U.S. and Canada are new to the edge lane road (ELR) treatment. Despite proven safety in the U.S., discussions of ELRs are still dominated by concern and questions about the treatment. These questions center on perceived and actual safety, the new crash modification factor for ELRs, the new AASHTO guidance, traffic calming impact, etc. Little known is the safety benefit of ELRs for drivers even where no VRUs are expected – indeed, this use may save more lives than its use as a facility for vulnerable road users.

Michael Williams will present on safety benefits, the regulatory status of ELRs, ongoing U.S. research, non-intuitive research findings, best practices, and future directions for the treatment.

Wednesday, April 23rd, 2025 at Noon MDT / 2pm EDT

What's New in the NACTO and AASHTO Bike Guide Updates?

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Earlier this year, NACTO released the Urban Bikeway Design Guide, Third Edition. This new edition includes more detailed technical guidance than previous editions and adds new guidance on policy, planning, and project development to ensure connected bikeable streets become standard practice. In this webinar, Cary Bearn, Senior Manager of Multimodal Design and Programs at NACTO, will share highlights from the guide demonstrating how the principles of All Ages & Abilities design translate into technical facility and intersection guidance.

The 2024 AASHTO Guide for the Development of Bicycle Facilities (AASHTO Bike Guide) presents a significant shift in designing streets for bicyclists of all ages and abilities. It emphasizes the need to plan connected bicycle networks and provides the design tools needed to implement those plans. Jeremy Chrzan from Toole Design (authors of the guide) will discuss key differences from the previous 2012 edition, and provide a high level overview of the guide's content, including the design of separated bike lanes and intersection design principles.

Wednesday, May 14th, 2025 at Noon MDT / 2pm EDT

When Driving Is Not an Option: Community Access for Nondrivers

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One-third of people living in the United States do not have a driver license. The majority of involuntary nondrivers are disabled, lower income, unhoused, formerly incarcerated, undocumented immigrants, kids, young people, and the elderly. They are also largely invisible due to a mobility system designed almost exclusively for drivers. When Driving is Not an Option shines a light on the reality for nondrivers and explains how improving our transportation system with nondrivers in mind will create a better quality of life for everyone.

Wednesday, September 17th, 2025 at Noon MDT / 2pm EDT

Spatial and Temporal Shifts in Pedestrian Serious Injuries and Fatalities

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Pedestrian fatalities in the US increased over 83% between 2009 and 2022, substantially more than the 16% increase for vehicle occupant fatalities over the same period. Past research has identified important relationships between these recent pedestrian safety outcomes and street design (e.g., arterials and midblock crossings) and motor vehicle design (e.g., the higher prevalence and larger dimensions of light trucks). But how have pedestrian fatalities and serious injuries shifted in the larger geospatial context? This webinar explores how pedestrian safety issues have shifted on the urban/suburban/rural continuum, identifying a shift in pedestrian crashes toward the suburbs. Neighborhood-scale analyses also identify pedestrian fatality and serious injury concentrations around retail and other small-scale commercial establishments and public transit. This work harmonizes planning and engineering research into a more complete story of the recent pedestrian safety crisis.

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Webinar Archive

Wednesday, February 5th, 2025 at Noon MST / 2pm EST

Vehicle Design and Pedestrian Safety

Pedestrian fatalities in the U.S. have surged by 83% since 2009, far outpacing other traffic fatalities and coinciding with the rise of larger vehicle sales. How much of this harm can be attributed to these vehicles?

Join Dr. Chris Cherry (Associate Director of CPBS), Saurav Parajuli (PhD candidate at University of Tennessee Knoxville), and Dr. Nick Ferenchak (Center Director of CPBS) for an in-depth exploration of how vehicle attributes like weight, size, and age influence pedestrian injury outcomes. Drawing on their analyses of single-vehicle pedestrian crashes in Tennessee and Texas from 2009 to 2024, they’ll discuss key trends and insights. Explore the future of pedestrian safety as vehicle weight and size continue to grow, with considerations for the influence of vehicle age.

Download presentations:

Vehicle Design UNM (pdf)

Vehicle Design UTK (pdf)

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December 11th, 2024 at 10am PST / 1pm EST

Street Livability and Safety Webinar

Gain insight on the conflict, power, and promise of our streets as discussed in Livable Streets 2.0 by Bruce Appleyard. Then discover the surprising truths behind our transportation systems in Killed by a Traffic Engineer: Shattering the Delusion that Science Underlies our Transportation System where Wes Marshall uncovers how flawed assumptions, not science, shape our streets —and how we can reclaim them for safer, more equitable communities for all road users.

Download presentations:

Bruce Appleyard Slides (pdf)

(Wes Marshall's slides are not available)

Wednesday, November 13th 2024 at Noon PDT / 3pm EDT

Pedestrian and Bicycle Level of Traffic Stress

What are Pedestrian Level of Traffic Stress (PLTS) and Bicycle Level of Traffic Stress (BLTS)? How can PLTS and BLTS be used to improve street safety and comfort and help communities move toward more connected VRU networks? Center for Pedestrian and Bicyclist Safety (CPBS) researcher Bob Schneider will first introduce the new PLTS tool, which can be found here. Then CPBS researcher Nick Ferenchak will detail new BLTS intersection criteria.

Download presentations:

PLTS Slides (pdf)

BLTS Slides (pdf)

Monday October 21, 2024 at Noon PDT / 3pm EDT

From Heartbreak to Hope:
Advocating for Safer Streets Through Storytelling

Join CPBS Associate Director Dr. Bruce Appleyard and guests to talk about how advocates are turning traffic tragedies into action for safer streets.

Guests include:

Barbara Toth -- Founder of Vulnerable Road Users New Mexico

Amy Cohen, Laura Keenan, Tom DeVito -- Families for Safe Streets

Tasha Hairston Springs -- Founder of Mindfully Aware Driving Solutions

Triny Willerton -- Founder of It Could Be Me

Webinar topics:

Traffic violence stories
How to be an effective story teller
Tips for advocating your cause
How research can help advocacy

This is the first of an ongoing series about how incidents of traffic violence can be used to advocate for safer streets. To keep updated on future webinars, use the form at the bottom of the page to sign up for the CPBS newsletter.

July 16, 2024 at 1:00pm PST / 4:00pm EST

Demystifying Federal Grants for Street Safety Improvements

New pedestrian and bicyclist safety funding opportunities such as Safe Streets and Roads for All (SS4A) and the Active Transportation Infrastructure Investment Program can be difficult to navigate. Tune in to learn more about these grants, hear about winning strategies from past recipients, and improve your application. The SS4A Deadline #3 closes on August 29. Speakers will include the Federal Highway Administration, the City of Charlotte NC, and Bernalillo County NM.

Powerpoint files:

May 1, 2024 at 10:00am PST / 1:00pm EST

Advocating for Bicycle Safety: Strategies for Success at Local, State, and National Levels

Learn which strategies worked and which didn't, stories of success, how research can help, and more.

Presenters

BikeABQ (local)
Two Bikes Knoxville (local)
CalBike (state)
League of American Bicyclists (national)