Toward Zero Deaths-Proactive Steps for Your Community

Description/Learning Outcomes:

The National Center for Rural Road Safety (Safety Center) and the National Association of County Engineers (NACE) co-hosted a FREE, 1.5-hour online webinar.                                                                                           

Webinar Description

The webinar provided an overview of the Toward Zero Deaths (TZD) National Strategy.

Webinar Outcomes

At the conclusion of this webinar, participants were able to:

• Understand the origins background of the zero deaths philosophy
• Be familiar with the latest fatality trends
• Identify the six emphasis areas in the TZD National Strategy
• Understand the importance of Safety Culture
• List the implementation steps for TZD on Rural and Local  Agencies
• Understand the proactive steps to take to get a zero deaths program started in your county or city
• Know where to find additional resources for TZD

Target Audience

This training was directed towards local engineers, “road managers,” and local representatives with road and transportation responsibilities but provided information that can be used by others as well. Participants should have some basic familiarity with transportation safety.

Course Presenters

Brian Roberts, National Association of County Engineers (NACE) Executive Director

• Brian is the Executive Director of the National Association of County Engineers in Washington, D.C. Brian has previously held leadership positions in local and federal government, consulting, non-profit, industry, and education sectors. He was previously Director of the Water Resources Learning Center, Executive Director of a national trade association, an employee of FHWA and began his career with Fairfax County Public Works in VA. He has a BS and MS from VA Tech in Civil Engineering and is a licensed professional engineer in VA.

Marie Walsh, Louisiana Local Technical Assistance Program (LTAP) Director

• Marie is currently Director of the Louisiana Local Technical Assistance Program (LTAP). In partnership with the LADOTD, she helped found and now coordinates the LA Local Road Safety Program (LRSP). Marie serves on the Louisiana Strategic Highway Safety Plan Implementation Team and is a member of the Executive Committee of the Louisiana Traffic Records Coordinating Committee, ITE Steering Committee for Vision Zero, and TZD Steering Committee. Marie is active in national road safety efforts and is a third-term member of the TRB Transportation Safety Management Committee, chair of the Towards Zero Deaths Subcommittee, panel member overseeing NCHRP 17-65 Guidance on Implementing the TZD National Strategy and NCHRP 17-69 A Strategic Approach to transforming Traffic Safety Culture to Reduce Deaths and Injury. She received her MS Degree in Environmental Engineering from LSU in 1985, and PHD in Human Resource Education and Workforce Development in 2003. 

Robert Hull, Cambridge Systematics and Safety Center 

• Robert, a licensed professional engineer, is a Senior Transportation Safety Engineer and Planning Manager with Cambridge Systematics. Robert joined CS after serving over 25 years with the Utah Department of Transportation (UDOT). As a CS project manager, he leads projects at the Federal and state levels to improve roadway safety management processes. He has serves in leadership roles with the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO), National Cooperative Highway Research Program (NCHRP), and the Transportation Research Board (TRB). With over 13 years as the UDOT Director for Traffic and Safety he was responsible for developing statewide direction, policies, and engineering standards for all traffic and safety engineering programs. He founded and directed Utah’s Zero Fatalities program that led to a culture of safety, innovation, and to “zero fatalities” being a UDOT strategic goal.