POLICY

Vision Zero Resolutions Description

A resolution is typically used to express a legislative’s body’s opinion or intent about a particular issue or topic a community is facing. Oftentimes communities use resolutions to educate the public about critical issues and send a strong signal to the public and state and federal legislators that people care about certain issues.

However, sometimes there is not enough clarity on what an outcome should be on an issue or how to resolve the issue. Mayor, Council, School Board, Homeowners Association, or others may be more comfortable stating their support for or against a particular issue using a resolution instead of passing an ordinance.

The Indianapolis Regional Transportation Council (IRTC) Joint Policy and Technical Committee approved Resolution Number 18-IMPO-022 on December 12, 2018. Resolution Number 18-IMPO-022. The MPO policy resolution supported a regional vision zero initiative to reduce motorist, bicyclist, pedestrian, transit user, and other transportation-related deaths and serious injuries to zero. Unlike other resolutions previously adopted for performance measures, this one does not have a mandate.

*Indianapolis Metropolitan Planning Organization Transportation Policy Committee was previously known as the Indianapolis Regional Transportation Council (IRTC) when the Vision Zero Resolution was passed.

Indianapolis MPO’s policy resolution

Considerations

While a resolution is typically the first start to implementing vision zero, resolutions do not require action and are not enforceable. A resolution is a nonbinding, official statement. A resolution typically has a main motion with whereas clauses stating the reasons for a policy, position, or action. These clauses or statements that begin with “WHEREAS”, and are statements documenting facts, or existing conditions, the change that needs to occur, the authority of the body making the resolution, and a call for a specific action or program with a timetable.

Supports of vision zero know that the typical approach to transportation mobility safety is not enough anymore and a fundamental shift in philosophy and approach to traffic are needed. However, that is easier said than done. Most communities, agencies, or nonprofits who want to enact vision zero policies, a plan, design solutions or merely support others start with a strong policy resolution. Many of the resolutions for vision zero have been an overall resolution supporting the goals of vision zero. These resolutions often start out with stating that fatalities are not acceptable, the action that needs to be taken, and that the legislative body supports the goals of vision zero.

/ Some facts or statements to consider in a resolution:

/ Percent pedestrian fatalities of total traffic fatalities

/ Number of total pedestrian crashes per fatalities per year

/ Percent of pedestrian crashes occurring outside the intersection

/ Safety is a priority for all road users.

/ Crossings are essential to a complete network for pedestrian mobility.

/ Pedestrian safety is part of overall quality of life and improved public health.

/ Improvements to pedestrian safety often improve safety for all road users.

LONG-TERM PLANS

Planning is at the core of every community and every system. It forms the policy basis for what communities want to do for the next 20 years in their community. There are many different types of plans that can be created to address a range of needs in a community in which elements of Vision Zero could be incorporated into or a community could create a specific Vision Zero Action Plan. This section will summarize the various types of plans and how Vision Zero could be incorporated.

COMPREHENSIVE/LAND USE PLAN

A Comprehensive/Land Use Plan is a 20-year policy document that layout out how a community will develop over the next 20 years. It illustrates the quantity, quality, type, and location of various land uses. Indiana has minimum requirements for a plan as permitted by the 500 series of Title 36-7-4 of the Indiana Code. A community’s comprehensive plan must include:

/ A statement of objectives for the future development of the jurisdiction;

/ A statement of policy for the land use development of the jurisdiction; and

/ A statement of policy for the development of public ways, public places, public lands, public structures, and public utilities.

Most comprehensive have other elements including parks, natural resource protection, health and wellness, character and identity and transportation. Transportation is often an integral part of the comprehensive plan because land use and transportation are inherently linked. The land use intensity and location directly affect recommendations and improvements to a multi-modal system. Incorporating vision zero elements including goals, principals, analysis of the transportation system, and recommendations are a natural evolution of the transportation element.

Resources: / APA Indiana Citizen Planning Guide:

Chapter 7 Comprehensive Plans

/ Local Comprehensive Plans

/ Subarea Plans

Vision Zero Plans

A Vision Zero Plan is an implementation plan that is concrete, and action driven based on the needs of the community. It is focused on building equitable access to a community-wide multi-modal transportation system by addressing the problems both systemically and site specially, increasing safety, and reducing traffic related deaths and injuries.

A Vision Zero Action Plan is comprised of nine components. These components are not the only things to consider, but they are critical for Vision Zero to be effective.

/ Political commitment – The highest-ranking local officials (mayor, city council, city manager, etc.) must make an official and public commitment to a Vision Zero goal of eliminating traffic fatalities and severe injuries among all road users (including people walking, biking, using transit, and driving) within a set time frame. This should include passage of a local policy that states clear goals, commits to a timeline, identifies stakeholders, and demonstrates commitment to community engagement, transparency, and equitable outcomes.

/ Action plan – Vision Zero Action Plan (or strategy) is created within one year of initial commitment and is implemented with clear strategies, owners of each strategy, interim targets, timelines, and performance measures.

/ Multi-disciplinary leadership – An official Vision Zero task force is created and charged with leading the planning effort for Vision Zero. The task force should include, at minimum elected officials, community leaders, business owners, and department heads including Planning, Fire, Emergency Services, Public Works, District Attorney, Office of Senior Services, Disability, and the School District.

/ Equity – stakeholders commit to both an equitable approach to Vision Zero by establishing inclusive and representative processes, as well as equitable outcomes by setting measurable benchmarks to provide safe transportation options for all road users in all parts of the city.

/ Cooperation and collaboration

– A commitment is made to encourage meaningful cooperation and collaboration among relevant governmental agencies and community stakeholders to establish a framework for multiple stakeholders to set shared goals and focus on coordination and accountability.

/ Systems-based approach – leaders commit to and prioritize a systemsbased approach to Vision Zero by focusing on the built environment and policies that influence behavior, as well as adopting messaging that emphasizes that these traffic losses are preventable.

/ Community engagement –The Vision Zero task force plans meaningful community engagement, such as public meetings, workshops, online surveys.

/ Data-driven – stakeholders commit to gather, analyze, utilize, and share reliable data to understand traffic safety issues and prioritize resources based on evidence of the greatest needs and impact.

/ Transparency – The process is transparent to stakeholders and the community, including regular updates on the progress on the Action Plan and performance measures, and a yearly report (at minimum) to the local governing board.

Source: https://visionzeronetwork.org/ about/vision-zero-network/

BIKE & PEDESTRIAN PLANS & TRANSPORTATION PLANS

Bike & Pedestrian Plan and transportation plans are specialized transportation plan. Bike and pedestrian plans focus on bike and pedestrian connections throughout the community, whereas transportation plans focus on all modes of transportation and sometimes include bike and pedestrian systems as well. While these plans focus on the integration of multimodal options into the transportation systems, in the past, vision zero was not specifically discussed, but many of the principles might have been incorporated throughout.

Both types of plans use a systems-based approach. A systems based approach takes into account the needs of community, the existing conditions, the strengths, the deficiencies, and develops recommendations and strategies based on a set of criteria like costs and safety in order to create the most efficient, safe, and best possible environment for all transportation users. Determining a strategy or strategies to implement will likely be data-driven choices based on traffic counts and reports of accidents. Talking with elected officials and directors of other departments, such as engineering, planning, and parks will also be of value in order to determine feasibility and what realistically would be a good approach. Gathering support from people in the community is also critical. Especially reaching out to underrepresented communities, including minority populations, lowincome households, the homeless, and those that don’t have access to transportation options are critical when creating plans as they are the ones who often have the greatest need.

Updating transportation and bike and pedestrian plans to incorporate the principles of vision zero will not alter the systems-based approach. As a community’s needs change over time, traffic patterns and development will alter infrastructure needs. Additionally, as roadway improvements occur, additional infrastructure improvements could be done at the same time. Vision

Zero’s safe systems approach allows communities to move beyond crash data and look forward to identifying what areas are potentially unsafe and try to prevent them before they happen. So things such as separated bike lanes incorporated into a road improvement, multi-use trails with an enhanced crosswalk to connect a neighborhood with a school, and adding lighting along a dark corridor are things that should be considered during the planning phase.

Resources

/ Local Transportation Plans

/ Local Bikeways/Walkways/Transit Plans

/ Regional Bike/Pedestrian Plans

Transit Plans

Transit is a broad term used to cover bus, bus rapid transit, and light rail. Transit is another option to move people from one area of a community to another. The IMPO has documented a need in Central Indiana for mass transit and where it should be located. The MPO has conducted numerous studies working with a number of communities and local and regional partners on the effort. They have mapped out a strategy for implementation, sought legislation, and secured funding to construct the redline to provide the first leg in Marion County. For other transit plans and how it connects to the larger transportation system and it can be incorporated into vision zero principles see the MPO’s website or the Central Indiana Transit Page.

Resources:

/ Regional Transit Plans

/ Central Indiana Transit Plan

HIGHWAY SAFETY IMPROVEMENT PLAN (HSIP) / HIGHWAY SAFETY PLAN (HSP)

The Highway Safety Improvement Plan helps states plan highway safety improvement projects using a performance-driven process, implement those projects, evaluate the effectiveness, and annually report on the status of the implementation efforts. Many communities have a state-owned highway that run through or adjacent to their community. Coordination with INDOT becomes critical in planning and addressing safety in the community. Incorporating recommendations for state owned roadway into a local plan can help to get the state to help make the changes and infrastructure improvements to the portion or stretch of roadway that is in the community.

Resources:

/ Regional Roadway Plans

/ State Highway/Corridor Plans

/ INDOT HSIP Plan

Other

Complete Streets Ordinances Description

A complete streets approach integrates people and place in the planning, design, and operation of the transportation network. Complete street ordinances ensure that streets are designed to allow all modes of transportation to provide safe, convenient, healthy, and equitable mobility options for all users of the road. The National Complete Streets Coalition promotes policies and practices that promote street design are safe for all road users regardless of mode of transportation, age, ability, race, or income. Therefore, complete streets ordinances are policy component of vision zero which allows a lot of the design strategies to be incorporated into practice thru the ordinance.

Considerations

There is no singular design prescription for a complete street. A complete street in a suburban area will be different than a rural community versus a suburban community. A complete street may have narrow travel lanes, wide sidewalks, an on-street bike lane, a special bus lane, and frequent and safe cross walks such as median islands, or accessible pedestrian signals. All these elements must be determined based on the transportation goals of the community, the available right-ofway, and the development character that is existing and that is desired in the future. Extra consideration should be given to vulnerable populations where basic facilities might be deteriorating, missing, or insufficient. Typically, its these vulnerable populations who rely on alternative modes of transportation to access work, healthcare, education, childcare, and shopping.

Resource: National Complete Streets Coalition

Design Regulations Description

One of the principles behind vision zero is that death and severe injuries are unacceptable. People deserve a safe multi-modal system and it is the government’s responsibility to ensure that a safe environment is present and maintained. There are multiple factors within design that can influence people’s choices including modal options available, perceived safety, speed, and enforcement. Design guidelines and regulations are one way to help control a few of these factors.

Most streets are designed for vehicles and moving them from point a to point b in the most efficient, but safe manner. Pedestrians and cyclists are secondary to vehicles and oftentimes motorists become distracted which is what causes crashes. Other times, the design of the roadway, environmental conditions, or lack of experience, ability, or understanding of the transportation system also results in crashes. Sometimes, a motorist is traveling too fast because there is nothing within the roadway design that forces a motorist to stay at a safe speed for the roadway. In any of these cases, the transportation system should be designed to ensure that resulting crashes do not result in people being killed or seriously injured.

Vision Zero is a shift in focusing on just education to change behavior and focusing on changing the systems that influence polices and the built environment – key factors which affect behavior and the choices users make. Federal, state, regional, and local agencies, planning public works and departments, and nonprofits like the National Complete Streets Coalition, Health By Design and others are starting developing design guidelines and regulations to standardize how mobility systems are designed and constructed to safely accommodate multiple modes.

Considerations

Prior to developing any guidelines or regulations, it is best to develop policy that sets the basis for regulations. Public input, data and benchmarking is often needed to develop that policy. Other items in this section such as resolutions and long-term plans will help set the framework for the guidelines and regulations and ensure they are supported by elected officials, the public, and potentially a court of law.

Roadway design must prioritize safety of all modes of transportation while considering site or system context, intended behavior, and the most physically vulnerable. Roadway design does encourage or discourage certain levels of speed. Traffic calming measures have shown to have an impact of reducing speed. So, while emergency vehicle access is necessary; wide, unobstructed streets encourage higher levels of speed and a comprise is needed to achieve the community’s safety goals.

The Vision Zero Streets Design Standard was developed by Transportation Alternatives based on solutions available in New York City Department of Transportation Street Design Manual. “It was developed to embody the Vision Zero principles while reducing motor vehicle traffic, increase accessibility, and protect the most vulnerable users of the street. To qualify as a Vision Zero Street, a design must achieve three core functions4:

/ Discourage speeding by design

/ Encourage waking, biking, and/or public transit use;

/ Provide accessibility to all, regardless of age or physical ability”

4 Vision Zero Streets website, July 7, 2020. https://www.visionzerostreets.org

Resources:

/ USDOT Complete Streets

/ Smart Growth America

/ National Association of City Transportation Officials

/ Global Street Design Guide

/ Designing Streets for Kids Guide https://safety.fhwa.dot.gov/ speedmgt/ref_mats/fhwasa09028/ resources/TRR1751-DesignFactors. pdf

/ Fitzpatrick K, Carlson P, Brewer M, Wooldridge M. Design Factors that Affect Speed on Suburban Streets. Transportation Research Record: Journal of the Transportation Research Board 2000;1751:18–25.

/ Complete Streets: Best Policy and Implementation Practices summarizes successful policy and implementation practices based on the examination of 30 communities across the country.

/ Complete Streets in the Southeast: A Tool Kit, a partnership between AARP Government Affairs, Smart Growth America, and the National

Complete Streets Coalition, is a how-to guide for implementing Complete Streets.