Program – 2021 Traffic Safety Conference — Center for Transportation Safety

Updated July 14, 2021

Wednesday, July 14, 2021
1:30 p.m. – 4:30 p.m.	Creating Successful Stakeholder Engagement Saving lives on our roads requires all of us to work together. Building coalitions and networking strengthens our ability to accomplish this goal. When people and organizations come together, share ideas that work and implement action, positive, long-term change can result. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration brings together different state and tribal examples and strategies of how we are better together. Presenters: Jerrod Moore, Program Manager, Tribal Injury Prevention Resource Ctr, Albuquerque Area Indian Health Board, Inc. (AAIHB) Bev Kellner, Program Director, Texas A&M AgriLife Extension, Passenger Safety Bobbi Brooks, Program Manager, Texas A&M AgriLife Extension, Watch UR BAC Shelly Barrett, Coordinator, Northwest Regional Safety Coalition Lisa Kelloff, Chief Executive Officer, Safer New Mexico Chanita Vazquez, Occupant Protection Program Coordinator & Diversity Outreach Coordinator, Louisiana Highway Safety Commission.
1:30 p.m. – 4:30 p.m.	Data, Strategic Planning Driving Success in Tom Green County Sheriff’s Office’s STEP Program Changes to TxDOT’s Selective Traffic Enforcement Program in 2018 were designed to help law enforcement develop and enhance data-driven traffic-enforcement and social-harm reduction strategies. While many STEP agencies have enjoyed success since the changes, the Tom Green County Sheriff’s Office has enjoyed success in both reducing crashes at previous trouble spots and increasing DWI and other arrests, as well as an increase in deputies wanting to participate in the program. TGCSO Sgt. Gary Cole will discuss the keys to his STEP program’s success, followed by a presentation of new traffic-program-related data-collection tools from LEADRS (Law Enforcement Data Recording System), and Texas Law Enforcement Liaison Michael Munson will discuss simple data hygiene strategies that every agency can use to begin building toward and enhance success in using data to reduce social harms in their communities. Presenters: Gary Cole, Sergeant, Tom Green County Sherriff’s Office Jerard Collins, LEADRS Assistant Program Manager, Texas Municipal Police Association Michael Munson, Law Enforcement Liaison, Texas Municipal Police Association
1:30 p.m. – 4:30 p.m.	Finding the Needles in the Haystack – Using Safety Analysis Tools to Improve Safety In order to implement safety countermeasures, it’s critical to know what locations have the greatest potential for safety improvement. This can be a daunting task, as crashes are often spread over the entire network, and may not conveniently concentrate themselves, and these locations may or may not be the locations with the most crashes. The purpose of this session is to familiarize you with practical, user-friendly tools that can help you identify locations where the potential for safety improvement is greatest. The instructors will focus on the TxDOT safety scoring tools, safety benchmarking, systemic tools for addressing unconcentrated crash types (such as pedestrian crashes), estimation tools for pedestrian crossings, intersections, and roadway segments (freeway and non-freeway) Several of the tools incorporate both vehicular and pedestrian crashes. The emphasis will be on spreadsheet-based tools that are straightforward to use, and freely available. Presenters: Robert Wunderlich, Center for Transportation Safety Director, TTI Srinivas Geedipally, Research Engineer, TTI Lingtao Wu, Associate Research Engineer, TTI
Thursday, July 15, 2021
9:00 a.m. – 10:00 a.m.	Opening Welcome Session Robert Wunderlich, Director, Center for Transportation Safety, Texas A&M Transportation Institute Keynote Speaker: Nanda Srinivasan, Associate Administrator for Research and Program Development, NHTSA
10:00 a.m. – 10:15 a.m.	Break
10:15 a.m. – 11:45 a.m.	Breakout Sessions Roadway Safety Assessment Part I An introduction to the RSA process; Why and When to use RSAs and identifying resource needs for RSAs. Presenters: Stephen Ratke, Safety, and Traffic Operations Specialist, FHWA Craig Allred, Senior Safety Transportation Specialist, FHWA Employer Best Practices Employers who embrace driver and transportation safety training can reduce crash costs, decrease liability risk and save lives. Representatives from three organizations recognized for their commitment to road safety who have moved the dial on their safety programs and seen proven results will share tips of the trade. Panel: 2021 Our Driving Concern: Texas Employer Traffic Safety Award Winners Meredith Cerny, Risk Management Specialist, Port of Corpus Christi Authority Bartie Bray, Road Safety Lead-Permian, Shell Exploration & Production Company Brian Fielkow, CEO, Jetco Holdings & EVP, The GTI Group The Impact of COVID on Traffic Safety: National and Texas Perspectives The trends in crashes and fatalities both nationally and Texas during COVID will be explained and explored in this presentation including the role of speed, seat belt use, impaired driving, and pedestrian fatalities. Presenters: Jane Terry, Vice President Government Affairs, NSC Robert Wunderlich, Center for Transportation Safety Director, TTI Amy Berning, Research Psychologist, NHTSA
11:45 a.m. – 12:00 noon	Break
12:00 noon – 1:00 p.m.	Networking Opportunity Grab some lunch and come back for an interactive networking opportunity with Ben Jackson of Ben Jackson More Than Magic.
1:00 p.m. – 1:30 p.m.	Lunch
1:30 p.m. – 3:00 p.m.	Breakout Sessions Roadway Safety Assessment Part II The seven-step process for conducting RSAs, dealing with common challenges and issues in RSAs. Presenters: Stephen Ratke, Safety, and Traffic Operations Specialist, FHWA Craig Allred, Senior Safety Transportation Specialist, FHWA Transportation Needs of Emergency Responders Emergency Responders form a unique class of transportation system users. Similar to other user groups like young and older drivers, responders have transportation safety and research needs that differ from the traveling public more broadly. The design, construction, and operation of the transportation system directly and disproportionately influence the safety and efficiency of emergency responders. This emergency responder panel led discussion seeks to promote interdisciplinary collaboration, research, and innovation within the field of transportation. Presenters: David McDonald, Traffic Incident Management Coordinator, Texas Department of Transportation Scott Lail, EMT-P, FP-C, CFE, Fire Chief, Cleburne, Texas Daniel Dytchkowskyj, MPA, Training Director, Erie County Sheriff’s Office Steve Austin, Emergency Responder Safety Institute, Cumberland Valley Volunteer Fireman’s Association Gay Rochester, Towing and Recovery Association of America, Rochester IMARC Pivoting Traffic Safety in the Time of COVID COVID-19 presented the traffic safety community with unprecedented challenges. Traffic patterns and behaviors changed while at the same time, outreach and education couldn’t be in-person. Come to this session to hear about how three innovators pivoted their safety programs. Presenters: Anna Red, OP Program Manager, Behavioral Traffic Safety Section – Traffic Safety Division, TxDOT Monica O’Kane, Traffic Safety Specialist, Behavioral Traffic Safety Section – Traffic Safety Division, TxDOT Stacey Tisdale, Project Manager, Teens in the Driver’s Seat, TTI Gabriella Kolodzy, Associate Transportation Researcher, Teens in the Driver’s Seat, TTI Brian Fielkow, CEO, Jetco Holdings & EVP, The GTI Group
3:00 p.m. – 3:15 p.m.	Break
3:15 p.m. – 4:45 p.m.	Breakout Sessions Risky Driving – Regaining Momentum and Saving Lives The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration will lead this engaging session with key highway safety leaders on traffic safety issues that are prevalent on Texas roads. Texans continue to see speeding drivers and more people driving under the influence of alcohol and other drugs, resulting in an alarming increase in fatalities. This discussion with safety stakeholders and transportation safety officials will spotlight key actions to help change the direction of these disturbing trends. Presenters: Alex Otte, National President, Mothers Against Drunk Driving Jeff Spivey, Chief of Police, Irving Police Department Randy Chhabra, Captain, Austin-Travis County Emergency Medical Services Transportation Research Board, Section Subcommittee on Emergency Response Midyear Meeting The TRB Section Subcommittee on Emergency Response is seeking members, friends, and participants interested in emergency responder transportation. Anyone looking to apply their knowledge of transportation safety, planning, maintenance, and design for the betterment of the emergency responder community is welcome to attend. This meeting will also highlight research needs and planning activities for the 2022 TRB annual conference. Presenter: Scott Parr, Assistant Professor, Department of Civil Engineering, Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University Virtual City Tours: Safety Solutions for All! Take a virtual tour of three Texas cities to see what new designs and safety improvements have been implemented to increase safety for all road users. Presenters: Ella Ryan, Engineer, City of Austin, Toole Design Group Lauren Grove, Senior Staff Analyst, City of Houston, Houston Public Works Ian Hlavacek, Managing Engineer, City of Houston, Houston Public Works Greg Reininger, Principal Planner, City of San Antonio – Transportation Department Improving Traffic Safety with Data Innovations Going beyond crash data statistics, alternative data sources are being used to diagnose and address traffic safety problems on Texas roads. Join this session to learn how. Presenters: Michael Martin, Assistant Research Scientist, TTI Subasish Das, Assistant Research Scientist, TTI Jim Cline, Senior Research Engineer, TTI Minh Le, Associate Research Engineer, TTI Luke Albert, Associate Research Engineer, TTI
Friday, July 16, 2021
9:00 a.m. – 10:00 a.m.	Opening Session Robert Wunderlich, Director, Center for Transportation Safety, Texas A&M Transportation Institute Keynote Speaker: C. Michael Lee, Director of Engineering and Safety Operations, TxDOT
10:00 a.m. – 10:15 a.m.	Break
10:15 a.m. – 12:00 noon	Breakout Session Texas Strategic Highway Safety Plan: Engaging Stakeholders in the 2022 Update The Texas Transportation Commission directed the Department of Transportation (DOT) to halve fatalities by 2030 and eliminate them by 2050, and TxDOT certainly can’t do it without widespread partnerships and participation. The purpose of this session is to jump start the process to update the Texas Strategic Highway Safety Plan in 2022 to achieve the goals by incorporating the Safe System approach used successfully in other nations to reduce fatalities and serious injuries on the roadways. Presenters: Susan Herbel, President, SBH Consult Robert Wunderlich, Director, Center for Transportation Safety, TTI Bonnie Polin, State Safety Engineer, MassDOT Rob Ritter, Director, Office of Impaired Driving and Occupants Protection, NHTSA Jessica Jermakian, Vice President Vehicle Research, Insurance Institute for Highway Safety Stephen Ratke, Safety and Traffic Operations Specialist, FHWA Texas Division Scott Parr, Assistant Professor, Emory Riddle University Kevin Elliot, Senior Marketing and Communications Specialist, Applied Research Associates
12:00 noon – 1:00 p.m.	Break
1:00 p.m. – 2:30 p.m.	Breakout Sessions Was Romain Grosjean Speeding? Formula 1 driver Romain Grosjean’s HAAS racecar was torn in half and burst into flames during the 2020 Bahrain Grand Prix after his car clipped another while jockeying for position early in the race. The fireball and debris were more than enough to stop the race but seeing Grosjean’s figure rise from the flames and jump to safety simply defied logic. How Grosjean survived, let alone free himself from a burning car and walk to the ambulance is a function of engineering and driver training. But it does beg the question: was speed a factor in the crash, and maybe more to the point: was Romain Grosjean speeding? Presenters: Michael Munson, Law Enforcement Liaison, Texas Municipal Police Association Larry Krantz, Police Traffic Services Program Manager, TxDOT Linking It All Together: Data Integration for Safety Research and Outreach Join to learn about the benefits of linking together data from multiple sources and how doing so can create significant innovations and improvements in road safety. Presenters: Amber Trueblood, Associate Research Scientist, TTI Cody Stewart, Assistant Transportation Researcher, TTI Felicia Yeboah Denteh, Epidemiologist III, the Office of Injury Prevention/EMS and Trauma Registries, Texas Department of State Health Services A Tale of Two Cities: The Impact of SNOVID on Traffic Safety in Two Texas Cities Curious about the impact of a unique weather occurrence in Texas in terms of traffic safety? This session focuses on how Amarillo, Texas that is accustomed to getting snow, and Bryan, Texas that is not accustomed to getting snow handled the snowstorm in February. Presenters: Marcie Perez, Assistant Research Scientist, TTI Wes Kimmell, Area Engineer, Amarillo District, TxDOT Ryan Jackson, Director of Maintenance, Bryan District, TxDOT Andrew Holick, Director of Transportation Operations, Bryan District, TxDOT

Due to complications associated with COVID-19, we are not able to provide opportunities to earn TCOLE credits online.