Vision Zero

What is Vision Zero?

• What's happening?

  In July 2023, the DTPW Vision Zero team submitted a competitive Safe Streets and Roads for All (SSA4) grant application to the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Safe Streets and Roads for All grant program. Funded by the 2021 Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, this new grant program highlights USDOT’s commitment to Vision Zero through the implementation of the Safe System Approach – a holistic approach guiding the paradigm shift in addressing roadway safety.
  
  The projects included in the grant application help advance our Vision Zero goal while also addressing documented transportation safety inequalities in communities throughout Miami-Dade County.
  
  Design and Construction
  DTPW has completed the construction and operational improvements of six safety projects throughout Miami-Dade County and has three more projects under construction. In total, DTPW is anticipating completing 22 safety projects by 2024.
  

  Planning and Funding
  The DTPW Vision Zero team has also submitted other federal, state, and local funding requests for identified projects in the program. Funding requests have been submitted for consideration in the federal Congressional earmarks and Highway Safety Improvement Program (HSIP) and state County Incentive Grant Program (CIGP) and Transportation Alternatives Program (TAP). Local funds are also being requested to leverage the existing half-penny surtax funding approved for the program in 2021.
  
  DTPW was awarded $150,000 in Road to Zero Community Traffic Safety grant from the National Safety Council (NSC). The grant will help the program develop a Vision Zero Dashboard and conduct a Local Community Partners Liaison Pilot Program. The Vision Zero Dashboard will establish an online, public-facing GIS-based website to ensure official, consistent reporting among area agencies as recommended in the Miami-Dade County Vision Zero 2021 Framework Plan. 
  
  The Local Community Liaison Pilot Program will strengthen existing relationships between community action groups and vulnerable communities in Miami-Dade County. These existing relationships are sustained through the County’s Community Advisory Committees (CAC) which aim to help foster and sustain civic engagement, in addition to Community-Based Organizations (CBOs).
  
  Public Engagement
  Effective community engagement is a key priority, particularly in underserved neighborhoods of Miami-Dade County. Vision Zero’s public engagement team has conducted 32 outreach events throughout the County in 2022, with 30% of these events taking place in equity districts as identified in the Plan.
  
  Events have included outreach at transit stations, attending community events such as the Children’s Trust Family Expo, back-to-school events, and community food drives. Residents provided their opinions to project team members in English, Spanish and Creole and all materials have been translated.
  
  The Vision Zero team has continued attending community events throughout the County including the annual Ride of Silence and Ride to School events, the inauguration of a new phase of the Biscayne-Everglades trail, Miami Kids Magazine Back to School, and many more.
  
  Events have included outreach at transit stations, attending community events such as the Children’s Trust Family Expo, back to school events, and community food drives. Residents provided their opinions to project team members in English, Spanish and Creole and all materials have been translated.

• Focus Areas

  

  Miami-Dade County is following the Federal Highway Administration’s (FHWA’s) Safe System Approach to achieve its goal of Vision Zero. The Safe System approach is rooted in the six principles that; deaths and serious injuries are unacceptable, humans make mistakes, humans are vulnerable, responsibility is shared, safety is proactive, and redundancy is crucial.

  
  The Safe System Approach comprises five elements that together, create a holistic approach with layers of protection for road users: safe road users, safe vehicles, safe speeds, safe roads, and post-crash care.
  
  MDC’s commitment to zero traffic deaths informs five key focus areas that have been established to guide the County’s Vision Zero Program:
  

  • Enhance Processes and Collaboration
    Vision Zero is a new philosophy for Miami-Dade County and impacts the management of its transportation system, many foundational changes are needed to institutionalize the approach. Though the County regularly coordinates transportation projects and safety initiatives internally and externally, as a matter of practice, existing processes, programs, and laws do not explicitly address the loss of life on our streets in a proactive, data-driven manner.
    
    Key Actions
    DTPW will formally identify and continue to fund the Vision Zero Program with appropriate resources to ensure that safe designs are implemented, and safe behaviors adopted countywide.
    
    
  • Build Safe Streets for Everyone
    When we asked people what the County should do to improve traffic safety, the overwhelming top response was: build safe streets for everyone, including pedestrian crossings, bicycle facilities, and roadways. Pedestrians, bicyclists, and motorcyclists are often placed at the greatest risk when navigating the transportation system, and therefore streets and safety countermeasures should be designed with the needs of these vulnerable road users in mind. 
    
    Key Actions
    DTPW will implement targeted infrastructure improvements at identified high-injury crash locations to begin building safer streets for all users of our streets. 
    
    
  • Create Safe Speeds
    Speed reduction is an essential Vision Zero strategy. Higher speeds not only increase the risk of a crash, but also increase the risk of serious injury or death, regardless of mode. The consequences of speeding impact pedestrians and cyclists the most because their risk of dying if struck by a vehicle increases substantially with vehicle speed. 
    
    Key Actions
    DTPW will establish stronger partnerships with enforcement agencies to develop appropriate speed enforcement strategies. Additionally, DTPW will work to update the County’s engineering design standards, which guides how DTPW makes decisions about street design and operations, to include Complete Streets treatments, as identified in the Miami-Dade Complete Streets Design Guidelines.
    
    
  • Promote a Culture of Safety
    Safer streets and lower speeds will go a long way toward eliminating traffic deaths in Miami-Dade County. However, only through honoring our collective responsibility to make safe transportation decisions can we achieve Vision Zero. Safe Street-design alone cannot prevent someone from driving under the influence or while distracted. A culture shift must take place to develop a collective understanding that our streets are places for people of all ages and abilities to travel, play, shop, build community, and live.
    
    Key Actions
    DTPW will implement a multimedia safety education campaign for all street users. Educating Miami-Dade County residents and visitors about safe behaviors in a compelling and personal manner will assist DTPW and its partners to implement many of the other actions in this category.
    
    
  • Improve Data and Be Transparent
    Building from the findings of the analysis conducted for the Vision Zero Action Framework Plan, we must continue collecting and analyzing crash and speed data while evaluating the safety impact of future projects and creating a data-driven process that prioritizes roadway safety. Program progress and information should be shared with the public and stakeholders to support and promote efficiency and effectiveness.
    
    Key Actions
    DTPW will establish an official Vision Zero dashboard to be available to the public with project updates, events, educational campaigns, and aggregate crash information so that all agencies and partners build their information with consistent information and messaging.

• Resources

  Plans & Reports
  

  • MDC Vision Zero 2021 Framework Plan
  • Vision Zero GIS Map

  Presentations
  

  • Municipal Workshop Presentation, Aug. 2022 
  • Municipal Workshop Presentation, May 2023

  Educational Materials
  

  • Vision Zero Fact Sheet
  • Vision Zero Fact Sheet (Spanish)
  • Vision Zero Fact Sheet (Creole)

  Other related materials
  

  • FDOT's Target Zero Plan
  • TPO's Vision Zero Plan