Street traffic academy to expand statewide, making roads safer for everyone
Large colored barriers and street murals sit at the intersection of Virginia Ave and S College Ave to reduce serious traffic crashes and fatalities. (Madelyn Hanes/Indiana Capital Chronicle)
Hundreds of Hoosiers die each year in traffic collisions and thousands more are seriously injured. Numbers have fallen slightly but Indiana traffic safety groups are working to bring that number down even further statewide.
According to the Indiana Criminal Justice Institute, traffic fatalities decreased to 894 in 2023 compared to 985 fatalities in 2022. Another 4,232 Hoosiers were seriously injured in traffic crashes in 2023 while 5443 were seriously injured in traffic crashes in 2022.
Indianapolis-based nonprofit Health by Design is partnering with the Institute to expand its Indiana Road to Zero Academy, aiming to reduce serious traffic crashes and fatalities across the state.
Solutions include tactical urbanism, which uses street murals, separators and pedestrian-only lanes to slow down traffic and accommodate bikes, wheelchairs and strollers.
'Streets need to be rebuilt every year,' said Andrea Watts, Health by Design's communications and policy manager. 'We want to rebuild them right, but not just car orientated infrastructure — safe streets for everyone.'
Launched in 2022 with funding from the National Safety Council and Road to Zero Coalition, the academy initially offered virtual training over several weeks, spreading awareness and knowledge to various stakeholders working to improve Indiana's roadway. Now backed by the Indiana Criminal Justice Institute Traffic Safety Improvement Program, the program is shifting gears.
The Indiana Road to Zero Academy plans to offer two in-person regional training workshops — one in northern Indiana and one in southern Indiana — in mid- or late September. These hands-on sessions will teach the safe system approach: safe roads, safe speeds, and safe road users. It is designed for municipal staff, planners, engineers, safety advocates, and residents.
'Northern and southern Indiana were hungry to get this rolling,' Watts said.
The expanded academy also introduces a statewide Vision Zero Working Group, building on the Indianapolis Vision Zero Ordinance adopted in August 2024. Vision Zero prioritizes eliminating traffic deaths and serious injuries through smarter road designs that ensure safe travel for pedestrians, cyclists and drivers alike.
Health by Design will provide customized crash analysis and technical assistance to high-risk areas, partnering with data experts and EMS records to track fatal crashes and identify solutions.
The group has also teamed up with the Indiana Department of Transportation and the Department of Health to improve community safety. One of their initiatives, the Safe Routes to School program, is open to all Indiana schools — regardless of federal funding — and encourages more students to walk or bike safely to class.
Through this program, the organization supports schools through grants such as one for bike helmets. Most recently, they supported Fort Wayne students participating in Bike-to-School Day, Watts said.
Despite challenges from recent federal funding cuts and changes, the organization remains committed to enhancing traffic safety. Proposed federal funding cuts on green infrastructure attacks a lot of the work the nonprofit does, Watts said. Following threats to federal funding, state partnerships are becoming even more important.
'It has impacted us and we had to get more creative,' Watts said. 'There's an attack on a lot of the work we do and it feels like a step backward or we are stuck in time.'
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