Background

The Safe, Accountable, Flexible, Efficient Transportation Equity Act: A Legacy for Users (SAFETEA-LU) calls for an increased emphasis to be placed on the safety and security of the transportation system for motorized and non-motorized users. While much focus has been given to these matters in the past, most of that focus has revolved around urban issues. Many safety and security concerns (roadway safety, pedestrian and bicyclist safety, and flood evacuation) are present in both urban and rural areas; however, the different landscapes, population densities, roadway users, etc. of rural areas present unique challenges and opportunities for addressing safety and security issues.

Roadway Safety

Safety concerns for local roads largely center on high-speed crashes and run-off-the-road accidents. Although drivers are often at fault, unforgiving roadway conditions can turn a simple crash into a fatality. Regardless of the cause, rural collisions account for a disproportionate number of roadway fatalities. Nationally, only 20% of the population lives in rural areas, but 40% of the vehicle miles traveled (VMT) and 60% of fatal crashes occur there. Although California fares better than the national average, 37% of fatal collisions still occur in rural areas. In addition, the California transportation fatality rate is 16 deaths per 100,000 persons in rural areas compared to 9.3 deaths per 100,000 persons in urban areas.

One factor contributing to a higher fatality rate in rural areas is longer EMS response times. Because rural areas are farther from medical facilities, it takes longer for ambulances to reach crash sites. Nationally, EMS response time for an urban area is 7 minutes compared to 19 minutes for rural areas. In severe accidents, the longer a victim waits for medical attention, the more likely it is that person will die. This partially explains why the fatality rate is much higher in rural areas, but other high-risk behaviors also contribute.

Reducing the number of severe injury and fatal accidents is a high priority under SAFETEA-LU and other transportation programs. Because the fatality rate is so much higher in rural areas than in urban areas, short-term, effective safety improvements are being sought, and many technology-based projects are being implemented. Unlike lengthy and costly construction projects, which can take years to complete and for which funding is rarely available, intelligent transportation systems (ITS) projects can be implemented relatively quickly and can provide many of the same safety benefits as construction projects.

For example, the El Dorado County Transportation Commission, in coordination with the California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) and the El Dorado County Department of Transportation, proposes to implement a Collision Countermeasure System (CCS) at the uncontrolled, non-signalized intersection of U.S. 50 and Still Meadow Road. This system consists of warning signs that flash a warning message to motorists when cross traffic is approaching. Hopefully, this system will help prevent broadside collisions and improve roadway safety at this intersection. The Intelligent Transportation Systems case study examines this project in greater depth.

Bicyclist, Pedestrian, and Transit Safety

Rural communities face a different set of issues than more urbanized areas when it comes to looking at pedestrian, bicycle, and transit safety. While infrastructure remains a problem in rural areas, distance is often a more important factor in determining transportation choices. However, many people in rural communities still walk or bike to nearby destinations (including transit stops). In fact, many rural residents– youth, elderly, disabled, low income, or those without access to an automobile– are dependent on walking, bicycling, or taking transit to access desired goods, services, activities, and destinations such as medical services, education, and employment. Without amenities like sidewalks and bike lanes, bicyclists and pedestrians are more at risk to be involved in an accident.

In 2004, a pedestrian was killed or injured, on average, every 7 minutes on the nation’s roadways—nearly 73,000 injuries and deaths. California’s pedestrian fatalities as a proportion of total fatalities are much higher than the nation’s 11%, exceeding 17% of total fatalities in the State. In other words, the rate of pedestrian fatalities is 50% higher in California than the national average. Half of all pedestrian fatalities in the State were seniors over the age of 65 or youth under the age of 20. In 2006, the SACOG region’s rural areas experienced 18 fatal or severe injury pedestrian collisions.

For 2004, California, with 3.06 bicyclist fatalities per million of population, was 23% above the national rate of 2.49. In 2006, the SACOG region’s rural areas experienced 13 fatal or severe injury bicycle collisions. Some of the most high-risk behaviors for bicyclists include riding at night and riding under the influence of alcohol or drugs.

In terms of rural transit safety, the biggest concern is that rural transit routes often do not have regular fixed stops. Those wishing to board a bus must flag it down while waiting on the side of the road. Bus pullouts or waiting areas are rare, so passengers are subjected to high-speed traffic while they wait. Some rural operators do offer deviated fixed route service in which bus drivers can deviate from the fixed route to drop passengers at or nearer to their final destination.

Security

Much thought is now given to transportation security issues. Especially in light of the September 11 attacks and Hurricane Katrina, new emphasis has been placed on emergency evacuation prcedure. On a regional planning scale, three key areas of concern have been identified:

• the ability to plan for and react to natural disasters
• the capability to respond effectively to man-made events
• the interoperability of various public safety communication systems

Yet, most of the focus has been on urban areas. Rural areas, though much less likely to be the target of a terrorist attack, still face threats from natural disasters.

In fact, much of the SACOG region lies in 100-year flood plains. Large rivers and creeks divide nearly every county, making the Sacramento region one of the most at-risk large metropolitan areas in the United States for a major flood event. In addition, many parts of the region are exposed to forest fires. This past summer’s record number of forest fires is evidence enough that our region’s rural and small urban areas are affected by fire and other natural disasters.

The Sacramento region has a number of existing organizations, plans, and infrastructure in place to provide for the security of the regional transportation system. Additionally, there are a number of current or pending efforts to plan for and respond to large-scale natural or manmade disasters and improve public safety communications systems. These efforts are especially important given the risk for major flooding events.

A full review of emergency response in the SACOG region’s rural areas can be found in the Emergency Response Case Study.

Emerging Issues and Challenges

Roadway Safety

Rural areas in the SACOG region are experiencing and will continue to experience tremendous growth over the next several decades. This growth brings with it new safety concerns. Increased traffic from new developments could conflict with traditional rural roadway uses such as farm vehicle movement and commercial truck travel. Farm vehicles move more slowly than the normal speed of traffic, which can cause backups on rural roadways that do not allow for easy passing. Drivers may get impatient and attempt to pass farm vehicles when it is not safe to do so. From 2002-2006, 370 of the region’s rural accidents were caused by improper passing. Of course, not all of these accidents were caused by drivers impatiently passing farm machinery, but with the predicted increase in rural population, it is important to identify and plan for possible safety concerns.

Similarly, increased passenger vehicle traffic may conflict with current commercial vehicle traffic patterns. Year after year, commercial vehicles (large trucks and buses) are involved in thousands of crashes. Heavy-truck crashes, especially those involving other vehicles, are more likely to result in death or serious injuries. Nationally, in 2004 a total of 5137 fatal collisions involved heavy trucks and buses, 13% of the total fatal collisions. California data show that an average of 439 (11% of total fatalities) fatalities occurred between 2002 and 2004 as a result of collisions with trucks and buses. In the SACOG region, 8% of rural road crashes involved trucks. When only considering fatal accidents, trucks were involved in 10% of crashes.

Another safety issue likely to accompany rural population growth is rear end accidents. Unlike urban roads, which generally accommodate traffic that is all moving close to the same speed, rural roadway speeds vary tremendously, from the slow-moving farm equipment mentioned above to speeding motorists avoiding highway congestion. Varying speeds, when combined with constant access points can lead to more accidents. Access points refer to any outlet that provides access to the roadway including cross streets and driveways. As more developments spring up in rural areas (i.e. shopping centers, subdivisions, etc.), more driveways are likely to appear as well. An increase in access points has the potential to increase rear end accidents. The rear end is the most common type of collision, though not the most severe, causing 41% of property damage only (PDO) accidents in the SACOG region’s rural areas. Although these accidents usually do not result in injury, they carry a substantial economic cost in lost time and money.

In addition to the abovementioned emerging roadway safety issues, rural areas face more endemic safety problems including high-speed roads, poor lighting, and alcohol use. The Roadway Safety in Rural Areas case study details the effects of these high-risk safety issues on the SACOG region’s rural areas and provides innovative ideas for addressing them.

Elderly Driver Safety

The increasing number of older drivers using the nation’s roadways in future decades will pose many challenges. Nationally, the 65 and older age group, which numbered 35 million in 2000, is expected to swell to 70 million by 2030, accounting for roughly one-fifth of the country’s driving population. The California Department of Aging (CDA) estimates California’s elderly population will rise from 4.9 million in 2000 to over 6.5 million in 2010, an increase of 32%. In the SACOG region, similar growth in the senior population is expected, especially in our region’s rural areas. According to the California Task Force on Older Adults and Traffic Safety (OATS) Report, traffic collisions continue to be a major cause of serious injury to California’s seniors. Persons 65 and older are more likely to receive fatal injuries when compared with persons from any other age group, due to their increased physical frailty. Older drivers are good drivers, but the effects of aging ultimately affect the safe driving abilities of some seniors.

Bicyclist, Pedestrian, and Transit Safety

While urban areas have complete bike/ped infrastructure, many rural areas do not even have paved shoulders, let alone sidewalks, bike lanes, or crosswalks. Too often, bicyclists and pedestrians are forced to travel alongside high-speed traffic with no buffer between them and vehicular traffic. Narrow or non-existent shoulders can be hazardous both to pedestrians and bicyclists, who are more likely to be injured in an accident, and to vehicular traffic which may back up when vehicles are unable to pass safely. Some counties opt to re-pave only part of a shoulder instead of the whole shoulder. Although counties will see cost savings in the short run, paving the whole shoulder will increase shoulder life and enhance cyclist safety in the long run. As rural areas continue to develop and more pedestrians and bicyclists use rural roads, it will become increasingly important to make investments that prevent conflict between users.

Many residents in the rural portions of the region actually prefer to have roadways that reflect a more rural setting, that is, without curbs, gutters, and sidewalks. For that reason sidewalks often are not constructed in rural areas. The solutions to increasing the safety of rural roads must be sensitive to the community preferences and values of rural areas that are often much different from those in urbanized areas. Finding a balance between preserving rural character and providing adequate non-motorized infrastructure is essential in keeping our region’s rural areas safe.

Security

Evacuation of rural areas presents certain challenges that are not so prevalent in urban areas. Rural areas are much less dense than urban areas. This means that using mass transit vehicles to transport residents to safer areas is harder because the population is spread out over a larger land mass. In addition, transit-dependent populations are harder to serve because many may not be able to make it to central evacuation locations. Rural evacuation plans, therefore, need to carefully address transit-dependent populations so that no one gets left behind in an emergency situation.

It has already been shown that the SACOG region is subject to flooding and forest fires. The numerous rivers and creeks in the region and the long, dry summers provide ideal conditions for these two natural disasters. These occurrences are likely to increase in frequency as global climate change worsens. Scientists have predicted that as global temperatures continue to rise, the severity and frequency of natural disasters will increase as well. It is impossible to predict what the future will bring to the SACOG region, but it is important for our rural areas to be prepared for the worst.

Rural Transportation Safety Innovations

Roadway Innovations

• Proper signage and pavement markings: Correctly placed and consistently employed signs may be the most effective strategy to save lives at a cost that almost any county can afford. Mendocino County, CA has demonstrated just how effective signs are as a low-cost safety measure. In a landmark, low-tech program, the Mendocino County Department of Transportation (MCDOT) reduced its crashes by a startling 42.1% from 1992 to 1998 at a cost of $79,260 over the 6-year period. In addition, clear and wide pavement markings indicating centerlines, lane lines, and edge lines also help reduce accidents.
• Larger signs: As drivers age, many gradually lose their eyesight. Making signs larger and using larger, bolder text can help drivers see signs clearly and navigate roadway hazards.
• Rumble strips and raised pavement markers (RPMs): For additional delineation of the driving path, particularly at night or during wet weather, RPMs and rumble strips can provide tactile and auditory warnings to drivers when vehicles traverse into another lane or off the road.
• Intersection control beacons: Installing traffic signals at every rural intersection is neither practical nor advisable, but intersection control beacons can be very useful in reducing rural collisions. These devices use flashing red and yellow lights to alert drivers to cross traffic at intersections. Traffic control beacons can reduce collisions by up to 43%. Similarly, pedestrian-activated flashing beacons can keep pedestrians safe when they cross rural roads.
• Recovery distance: Providing wider shoulders helps prevent motorists from running off the road. The recovery area should have a “clear zone” policy that removes obstacles like poles, trees, steep slopes, and drainage structures. Increasing roadside recovery distance by 5 feet can reduce accidents by 13%, 12 feet by 29%, and 20 feet by 44%.
• Improve sight distance: If improper passing is leading to a large number of accidents, improving motorists’ sight distance and removing obstacles can prevent accidents from occurring.
• Speed enforcement: Speeding is the most prevalent factor contributing to traffic accidents. Using police personnel, automated enforcement, or speed display boards can all help prevent accidents. Automated enforcement can be cost-effective despite high start-up costs. Speed display boards are effective while present, but effectiveness wanes once the board is removed. Identifying key corridors with excessive speeds can help target enforcement efforts.
• Work zones: Accidents near construction zones are highly variable depending on road conditions. To reduce accidents, restrict work to non-peak hours, provide detour routes, warn motorists in advance, monitor speed, provide scope and schedule of project, provide traffic information, and coordinate with outside agencies (police, fire, etc).
• Access management: If excessive access points are causing accidents, access management can reduce the number of access points and the number of accidents. Access management aims to preserve and enhance the performance and safety of street systems by including proper spacing, medians, auxiliary lanes for transit, turn lanes, pedestrian and bicycle accommodations, and bus stop loading zones. Making these adjustments can reduce accidents by 40-60%.

Bicyclist, Pedestrian, and Transit Innovations

• Shoulder improvements: Although more costly than other safety improvements, shoulder improvements remain one of the most foolproof ways to prevent accidents with pedestrians and bicyclists. Widening or creating shoulders creates separate spheres for motorists and non-motorized traffic and helps minimize conflict among users.
• In-street signs: In-street pedestrian crossing signs are regulatory signs placed in the street (on edge lines, centerlines, or in medians) to remind drivers of their legal obligation with respect to pedestrians at unsignalized pedestrian crossings.
• Transit stops and bus pull-outs: Creating safe places for transit users to wait makes riding rural transit safer and more appealing. Shelters and benches are ideal for passengers but are not always feasible. Alternatively, bus pull-outs can be used to pull off the side of the road to load and unload passengers. Pull-outs keep traffic moving and prevent accidents caused by motorists trying to pass when it is not safe.
• i-STOP® Solar-Powered Transit Stop: This transit stop technology uses a solar-powered flashing light to flag down buses, eliminating accidental passenger pass-bys. When waiting passengers see their bus approaching, they activate the i-SIGNAL® flashing beacon. This flashing signal tells the bus driver a stop is requested.The i-STOP® also houses schedule information and emergency lighting.

Footnote

i The Statewide Integrated Traffic Records System (SWITRS) definition of rural areas refers to any unincorporated area. SACOG region rural collision statistics from SWITRS include rural areas in El Dorado, Placer, Sutter, Yolo, and Yuba Counties. “Rural areas” refer to unincorporated areas and incorporated areas with population <2500. Unless explicitly stated, all SWITRS collision statistics reflect a five-year period from 2002-2006.

Attachments

Attachment A: SAFE Call Box Program 2007 Annual Report
Attachment B: SAFE Call Box Calls by Type
Attachment C: SAFE Call Box History
Attachment D: SACOG Bike Trail Call Boxes

Case Studies