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County reviews Safe Streets Act a year on as crash reviews and signal changes ramp up
Summary
A one-year review of the Safe Streets Act (Bill 11-23) showed implementation progress: MCDOT and partners have referred dozens of school-area crashes for review, completed 31 LPI/NTOR installations and identified 200+ intersections for assessment; staff cautioned data to assess outcomes will take 1'3 years.
The Transportation & Environment Committee held a one-year review of the Safe Streets Act (Bill 11-23). Chair Jerry Glass said the law prioritizes pedestrian safety by increasing crosswalk walk times, restricting certain right-turns on red, requiring collision/site reviews near schools, and mandating an automated traffic enforcement plan.
Chair Glass cited county crash totals for context: "This year alone there have been 465 crashes involving pedestrians, cyclists, scooters, or wheelchairs. There have been 334 pedestrians hit, 94 cyclists injured, and 32 scooter-related crashes," he said, and added that 19 pedestrians were fatally injured this year. Staff said those crash totals informed targeted reviews and treatments.
Wade Holland, Vision Zero coordinator, described the interagency work: an MOU with Montgomery County Public Schools, monthly crash referrals to partners, and quarterly coordination meetings. Staff reported nine Safe Routes to School reviews initiated (seven underway) and that the first report is expected in early to mid next year.
Michael Taylor (DOT) told the committee 32 incidents had been referred to the State Highway Administration, five to Montgomery County Public Schools, and one to the city of Rockville. Staff said they are tracking crash types and looking for trends; left-turn collisions that struck pedestrians were identified as a recurring problem in the sample under review. "Out of the 18 collisions that we're looking at, 6 of those collisions were left turn vehicles turning left and striking pedestrians in the crosswalk," Taylor said.
On infrastructure changes, staff said more than 200 intersections have been identified for evaluation for lead pedestrian intervals (LPIs) and no-turn-on-red treatments; 31 locations have been implemented, primarily in downtown and urban centers including Bethesda and Downtown Silver Spring. Staff expects to complete implementation of evaluated intersections by the end of FY25 but cautioned it is too soon to draw conclusions on safety outcomes: crash-trend analysis typically requires one to three years of post-implementation data.
Councilmembers pressed for additional details on referrals (who the drivers were in certain incidents, whether students or visitors) and for clearer timelines on when reviews were initiated and completed; staff agreed to add jurisdiction breakdowns and timing to future reporting.
Chair Glass asked staff to provide annual status updates on crash trends and the effects of LPIs/NTOR implementations as data become available.
