Who is a member?
Our members are the local governments of Massachusetts and their elected and appointed leadership.
The MMA hosted a webinar with local regional planning commissions on July 23 to discuss how municipalities can plan and design safer streets. Speakers included (clockwise from top left) Tina Hein, vice chair of the Holliston Select Board and outreach coordinator for Massachusetts Safe Routes to School, Robert Raymond, transportation data services director for the Central Massachusetts Regional Planning Commission, Cape Cod Commission Transportation Program Manager Colleen Medeiros, and Ali Kleyman, Vision Zero program manager for the Boston Region Metropolitan Planning Organization.
The MMA hosted a webinar with local regional planning commissions on July 23 to discuss how municipalities can plan and design safer streets.
Ali Kleyman, Vision Zero program manager for the Boston Region Metropolitan Planning Organization, defined “vision zero” as a “proactive and systems-based approach to traffic safety.”
“The vision zero approach asks us — the planners, engineers, policymakers, public health professionals — to keep roadway users safe by focusing on all aspects of the transportation system: safe vehicles, safe speeds, safe road design, and post-crash care, in addition to safe road users,” Kleyman said. “Creating this layered approach to keeping people safe is key to vision zero. When one thing goes wrong, or when one person makes a mistake, there’s another solution in place that can keep people safe.”
Vision zero can be accomplished through infrastructure, such as speed humps or signage, or policies and processes, such as implementing lower speed limits and driver education requirements.
Transportation Program Manager Colleen Medeiros highlighted how the Cape Cod Commission developed tailored town profiles that compile crash statistics and recommend countermeasures to prevent future incidents.
Robert Raymond, transportation data services director for the Central Massachusetts Regional Planning Commission, said municipalities can integrate vision zero principles into their community master plans to advance safety, as seen in the town of Barre, or secure federal Safe Streets For All (SS4A) grant funding.
Webinar speakers discussed their experience using SS4A funding for data analyses, public safety campaigns, road and walk audits, and regional safety action plans.
Tina Hein, vice chair of the Holliston Select Board and outreach coordinator for Massachusetts Safe Routes to School, moderated 15 minutes of questions and answers, addressing inquiries regarding adoption of a regional action plan, addressing driver inattention, and working with local law enforcement.