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Pioneer Valley committee backs release of draft Vision Zero statement aiming for zero deaths by 2050
Summary
The JTC heard an SS4A-funded regional safety plan update and unanimously recommended that the MPO release a draft Vision Zero statement—setting a regional commitment to work toward zero fatalities and serious injuries by 2050 and seeking public comment.
Kayla Northup, project manager at VHB, told the Pioneer Valley Joint Transportation Committee that the regional Safety Action Plan—funded through a 2023 Safe Streets for All (SS4A) planning grant—will be followed by a demonstration project and is scheduled to be complete in the summer. "The plan will come first; it is due at the end of June and then following that the demonstration project will begin," she said.
The consultant team reviewed crash trends and presented a recommended Vision Zero commitment to reduce fatalities and serious injuries on Pioneer Valley roadways to zero by 2050, integrating Safe System principles. Northup said the team and PVPC staff recommended a balanced regional target informed by local data rather than adopting an aggressive near-term target that data do not yet support.
Pedestrian representative Betsy Johnson urged staff to include police agencies in stakeholder outreach, reporting that a Springfield official at a recent event appeared unfamiliar with Vision Zero and warning that local enforcement agencies must be engaged for the goal to be achievable. "I was hoping that our group would ... work with the police department to further move ahead with a Vision Zero effort in Springfield," she said, adding she would submit written comments.
PVPC staff and the consultant said coordination with MassDOT and targeted outreach to local police departments will be part of the engagement plan. Consultants also noted data caveats: some 2023–25 crash data were not yet finalized and statewide trends differ from local patterns.
The committee voted unanimously to recommend that the MPO release the draft Vision Zero statement for public review at its January meeting. The vote followed a motion from Paul Burns and a second from Conor Nightly.
What happens next: the draft will go to the MPO for release and public comment; the consultant team will continue stakeholder outreach, including planned contacts with local police agencies and repeated updates to the JTC during the plan development.
