Safe System Weekly | May 2, 2025
by Russ Martin
Welcome to this week’s edition! We’re watching for the release of the White House federal budget proposal to see how it may impact transportation programs. Meanwhile, states are being proactive about safety, and with the state legislative season winding down, we may see new state highway safety legislation signed into law.
New NHTSA Report: Resources to Prevent Impaired Driving in Rural Areas
Promising practices include local task forces, tribal partnerships, more efficient sobriety checkpoints, intensive supervision programs, social host campaigns, responsible beverage service training and more.
U.S. DOT Restores English Language Proficiency Requirement for Truck Drivers
Citing a series of fatal trucking crashes, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy has rescinded a prior policy that waived English language requirements.
State, Local Governments Still Waiting on Full-Year FY25 Formula Funding
As of April 25, states and cities had not yet received the balance (54.8 percent) of highway and transit formula funding, which includes federal funding for roadway safety initiatives.
Congress Considering How to Shore Up Highway Trust Fund
This week, the House Highways and Transit Subcommittee held a hearing about the long-term solvency of the Highway Trust Fund, which supports federal highway safety programs. The House Transportation’s Budget Reconciliation Proposal would charge new taxes on all vehicle registrations.
Increasing the Use of Smartphone-Limiting Technology to Combat Distracted Driving
A new report from the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety concludes that younger drivers are more likely to use Do Not Disturb (DND) cell phone features, though forgetting to turn on DND is common. A naturalistic study showed a 41% decrease in the odds of smartphone use while DND was activated.
Washington Mandates Car Speed Limiter Devices for Reckless Drivers by 2029
Joining Virginia, Washington State will also require excessive speeders to install this intelligent speed assist technology as a condition of licensure.
MBTA Mounts Cameras on Buses to Curb Bus Lane Parking
With traditional automated enforcement prohibited, the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) will issue bus lane parking citations from cameras on MBTA transit vehicles.
“Direct access to the curb is essential for riders to be able to get on and get off the bus safely,” said Alexandra Hallowell, who oversees the MBTA’s efforts to improve bus service. “When bus stops are blocked and buses are unable to reach the curb, riders need to exit the vehicle into the street or can’t exit the vehicle at all.”
California DMV Proposes to Allow Self-Driving Trucks
Proposed regulations would make way for the testing of autonomous commercial vehicles, overturning a specific ban.
GM Files Patent for Cars to Automatically Detect and Report Road Hazards
Under the proposed system, vehicle sensors would detect potholes, flooding and damaged road signs and send reports to road authorities.
CS Attends 2025 Maryland Highway Safety Summit
Prashanth Venkataram, PhD and Monika Pal attended the Maryland Highway Safety Office's annual statewide gathering to discuss policy updates in the state and leading highway safety issues. Topics discussed include the correlation between mental health and impaired driving arrests and the effectiveness of positive road safety messaging.
2024 Principal Promotions and Manheim and Taggart Award Winners Announced
Two members of our core Safety Team were recognized: Ryan Klitzsch and Casey Woodley ! Congratulations!
CS Openings
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That’s all for this week. Thanks for reading!
Send me any updates you'd like me to include next week at rmartin@camsys.com or message me on LinkedIn.