HomeMy WebLinkAboutTransportation Packet March 2016Note: Anyone wishing to speak at any Transportation Commission meeting is encouraged to do so. If you wish to speak, please
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AGENDA
I. CALL TO ORDER: 6:00 PM, Civic Center Council Chambers, 1175 E. Main Street
II. ANNOUNCEMENTS
III. CONSENT AGENDA
A. Approval of Minutes: January 28, 2016
IV. PUBLIC FORUM
V. NEW BUSINESS
A. None
VI. OLD BUSINESS
A. Tolman Creek and Siskiyou Blvd. Stop Sign (45 min.)
Commission will take public input regarding potential installation of a 4-way stop
VII. FOLLOW UP ITEMS
A. Transit
Discuss next steps for transit circulator
B. Downtown Parking and Multi Modal Circulation Study Update-Improvement Projects
Discuss Previous Meeting and Study Status
C. Bike Share/Car Share
Discuss Conference Call with Zagster
VIII. INFORMATIONAL ITEMS
A. Nevada St. Bridge Extension Project
B. Action Summary
C. Accident Report
D. Making and Impact Newsletter (March)
E. Grandview Shared Road Status
IX. COMMISSION OPEN DISCUSSION
X. FUTURE AGENDA TOPICS
A. Car Share
XI. ADJOURNMENT: 8:00 PM
Next Meeting Date: April 28, 2016
In compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act, if you need special assistance to participate in this meeting, please contact the
Public Works Office at 488-5587 (TTY phone number 1 800 735 2900). Notification 48 hours prior to the meeting will enable the City
to make reasonable arrangements to ensure accessibility to the meeting (28 CFR 35.102-35.104 ADA Title I).
Transportation Commission
Contact List as of March 2016
Name Title Telephone Mailing Address Email Address Expiration of Term
Dominic Barth Commissioner 617-840-5425 586 ½ C Street dofriesgowiththatshake@yahoo.com 4/30/2018
Danielle Amarotico Commissioner 541-840-3770 265 Alta Avenue Danielle@CommonBlockBrewing.com 4/30/2017
Joe Graf Commissioner 541-488-8429 1160 Fern Street jlgtrans15@gmail.com 4/30/2018
Alan Bender Commissioner 541-488-4967 145 Almond Street Alan.bender@erau.edu 4/30/2017
Corinne Vièville Commissioner 541-488-9300 805 Glendale Avenue corinne@mind.net 4/30/2016
or 541-944-9600
David Young Commissioner 541-488-4188 747 Oak Street dyoung@jeffnet.org 4/30/2018
Sue Newberry Commissioner 775-720-2400 2271 Chitwood Lane sue.j.newberry@gmail.com 4/30/2016
Non-Voting Ex Officio Membership
Mike Faught Director of Public Works 541- 488-5587 20 E. Main Street faughtm@ashland.or.us
Stefani Seffinger Council Liaison 541-708-3665 20 E. Main Street stefani@council.ashland.or.us
Brandon Goldman Planning Department 541- 488-5305 20 E. Main Street goldmanb@ashland.or.us
Steve MacLennan Police Department 541- 552-2433 20 E. Main Street maclenns@ashland.or.us
Scott Hollingsworth Fire Department 541- 552-2932 20 E. Main Street hollings@ashland.or.us
Janelle Wilson SOU Liaison 541-552-8328 1250 Siskiyou Blvd wilsonjan@sou.edu
VACANT Ashland Schools
Dan Dorrell PE ODOT 541- 774-6354 100 Antelope Rd WC 97503 Dan.w.dorrell@odot.state.or.us
Paige Townsend RVTD 541- 608-2411 3200 Crater Lake Av 97504 ptownsend@rvtd.org
VACANT Ashland Parks 20 E. Main Street
Jenna Stanke Jackson County Roads 541- 774-6231 200 Antelope Rd WC 97503 stankeJS@jacksoncounty.org
David Wolske Airport Commission david@davidwolske.com
Staff Support
Scott Fleury Eng. Service Manager 541-488-5347 20 E. Main Street fleurys@ashland.or.us
Karl Johnson Associate Engineer 541-552-2415 20 E. Main Street johnsonk@ashland.or.us
Kyndra Irigoyen Administrative Assistant 541-552-2427 20 E. Main Street irigoyenk@ashland.or.us
Transportation Commission
February 25, 2016
Page 1 of 6
ASHLAND TRANSPORTATION COMMISSION
MINUTES
February 25, 2016
CALL TO ORDER
Graf called the meeting to order at 6:04 pm
Commissioners Present: Danielle Amarotico, Dominic Barth, Joe Graf, David Young, Corinne Viéville, Alan Bender,
and Sue Newberry
Council Liaison Absent: Stef Seffinger
SOU Liaison Present: Janelle Wilson
Staff Present: Scott Fleury and Kyndra Irigoyen
Staff Absent: Mike Faught
ANNOUNCEMENTS
None
APPROVAL OF MINUTES
Approval of January 28, 2015 Minutes
The minutes were discussed and approved as amended.
ADDING OREGON SHAKESPEARE FESTIVAL LIAISON
Bender asked if staff had contacted OSF about a liaison for the commission. Fleury said OSF is interested in joining
the commission and will nominate someone from their internal staff to be on the commission. If we want to add OSF
as an ex-officio member, we will have to take a code amendment to the Council that will allow OSF to serve on the
commission.
ADJUSTMENTS TO THE AGENDA
None.
PUBLIC FORUM
Huelz Gutcheon, 2253 Highway 99
Gutcheon said he has been involved in the multi-modal project for many years. He said the transportation
commission is involved in designing intersections and as a person who rides the bus and rides a bike, he has noticed
that traffic gets hectic at certain times of the day in some intersections. He said he has spoken with others who ride
bikes and they have concluded that the designers of the intersections only drive cars. If everyone gave up their cars
for five years, they would see how it is out there.
Susan Sullivan 305 Stoneridge Ave.
She moved here two years ago and lives in the Meadowbrook Neighborhood. She has been having conversations
with her neighbors about the East Nevada Street Bridge and would like a public forum to be held on this topic so the
community can give their input on the matter. Nevada Street is not a wide street and there is high traffic in some
parts. She does not want to see another car bridge, but supports a pedestrian and bike bridge. If a pedestrian or bike
bridge was implemented, school children would be able to walk or bike to Helman Elementary instead of taking a
bus. There has also been talk about extending the Greenway because that is an area along the Greenway that is
missing from connecting it to Ashland.
NEW BUSINESS
Transportation System Plan-Transit Prioritization
Graf reviewed the handout. He said he looks at this more as what are we going to put our energy into, in order to get
funding and while reminding himself about the problems they are trying to solve and the people they are serving. The
These minutes are pending approval from the Transportation Commission.
Transportation Commission
February 25, 2016
Page 2 of 6
commission is trying to improve emissions, create access for everyone, and help with the parking situation. He said
they want to serve employees, tourists, students, and residents. He then reviewed the ten projects on the list, which
fall into the following categories: 1.) Improve existing service by supporting RVTD’s efforts in extending service hours
and increasing service frequency on Route 10; 2.) Provide bus rapid transit by providing an express bus service to
Medford and the airport. Graf said we have a lot of employees and students who do not live in Ashland and commute
here; 3.) Internal Ashland circulators by expanding service area, supporting a private transit circulator, supporting
SOU transit, establishing a rubber tire trolley, and implementing a central hub; 4.) Provide subsidies to riders by
establishing a customized bus pass program and supporting fare free transit in Ashland.
Graf said this is how he envisioned how things fit together, but any of the categories could be adjusted accordingly.
Fleury said he spoke with Paige Townsend from RVTD who said the board voted in favor of the 13 cent levy to
reduce Route 10 frequency (30 minute service to 20 minute service), add 30 minute frequency to Route 24, restore
Saturday service, add a route to southwest Medford, and maintain existing levels of service.
Young mentioned social media and wondered if this would be a good way to get a message out in supporting and
promoting the RVTD levy. Graf asked Young if he wanted to use social media to promote the levy and possibly to
receive public input. Young said yes, if we are motivated to support this levy, it is another level to get the word out.
We could construct a concise message. Graf said there are tremendous benefits to the city of Ashland and to the
people we want to serve if this levy passes and will improve the transit situation to help everyone. Young said
RVTD’s need to serve the underserved is their main priority, we may have these brilliant comprehensive plans for
what we want in Ashland, but they are going to support the people who cannot get to work or go buy groceries first.
Graf said he went to a public forum about transportation in Medford where he listened to community members speak
about situations surrounding transportation. He said it is heart rendering to hear their stories; people who have
disabilities, are unemployed, have young children, or do not have a car, and now there is not a bus service, or they
cannot go anywhere after a certain time. Bender said this has been the core market until recently. He said we only
have 60 days to get the word out on the levy. Barth asked if there is a group backing this levy. Young said they have
a board and maybe an advisor. Graf asked if Al Densmore was working on it. Fleury said he believes they have a
group that is not directly affiliated with RVTD and Al Densmore has been associated with promoting transit as well.
Viéville asked how the 13 cents compares to other levies. Newberry asked what the last proposed levy amount was.
Fleury said last time it was about 50-60 cents higher. Graf said a preliminary survey showed a 60/40 in favor of the
previous levy, but then it failed. Young said the majority of the served transit population did not vote and the people
voting do not use the bus. Graf asked if there were any more thoughts on the levy or transit in general. Bender asked
what if we joined forces with the Traffic Advisory Board in Jackson County to support the levy. Graf asked if everyone
supported the levy. Barth said he is supportive of public transportation and it would be great to develop an approach
where everyone embraces public transportation and not just the underserved population. If it ran more frequently, the
chances that more people would want to use it for smaller trips would increase, such as going to a restaurant. It
would be great to include everyone in our marketing. Bender said young people are coming back to transit, but gas is
half the price it used to be. Graf said if you are looking at emissions, then all of that stuff is irrelevant, and the point is
you want to have more people on transit and not driving individual cars. Barth noted that since he has lived here, he
has noticed that Phoenix and Talent seem to be becoming middle-class Ashland overflow and he wondered if we
could foster partnerships in transportation with them. Young asked if he was talking about the levy. Barth said that he
is proposing more of a grassroots awareness; a mass transit system that is efficient and effective would be a
valuable thing to the valley and changing the feeling and perception toward it. He realizes that the levy will be voted
on in 60 days, but if we reach out now to other cities, maybe two years down the road when the levy comes up again
people will vote in favor. Barth asked what could be done as the Transportation Commission to support the levy.
Young said first we have to agree that we believe it will benefit the whole valley, including Ashland, it is a public good,
it reduces emissions and allows low mobility people to access transit, and for all those reasons we craft a message.
Young said then we disseminate it with a plan, sort of like a campaign and commit to a plan of action.
Graf asked if the commission as a whole supports the levy. All said yes. Graf said first we could make a statement of
support and encourage the City Council to make a statement of support. He asked, secondly, do we as a commission
or as individuals want to work to support the levy. The first step is easy; the second step is a bigger commitment.
Transportation Commission
February 25, 2016
Page 3 of 6
Newberry said she agrees with those divisions and our support is easy to garner. She said the first thing we should
do is ask if RVTD is interested in our help and what sort of marketing campaign they are planning. This is RVTD’s
levy, not ours and we should inquire as to how we can help if we are serious about doing something and see what
role they would want us to fill and then see if that is something, we want to do. Young said part of this is that RVTD
may not even know if they want help or what they are doing, they have always failed and there is a lot of criticism of
their internal process. Graf said he thinks Newberry is right, if we are going to do something we should ask them how
to coordinate. Newberry said she thinks it is the diplomatic approach, if they say they do not know what they are
doing, then we could offer support. Bender said we definitely need the levy to pass and the majority of the voters are
not in Ashland, so if it is just us it will not pass.
Viéville/Bender m/s the Ashland Transportation Commission to endorse the RVTD levy and to recommend to
the City Council that they endorse the levy as a benefit to the city of Ashland. All in favor.
Graf said he would work with Faught and Fleury to craft a statement from the Transportation Commission in support
of the levy. Young said a message needs to be crafted that highlights the benefits to Ashland and the valley as a
whole by supporting this levy. He said he would keep putting it out there on social media and encourage others to
share it. Amarotico asked about writing a letter to the editor of the Mail Tribune. Young said yes, absolutely. Bender
said getting a joint statement from another commission would be more effective. Young said he could reach out to
John Darling about doing a feature article.
All agreed that the Ashland Transportation Commission supports the upcoming RVTD levy. Passage of this
initiative will directly benefit the Rogue Valley by increasing transit ridership through increased service
hours and greater frequency of routes. The economy of the Rogue Valley will benefit by enabling workers,
the disabled, and those without cars to participate in the economy by means of public transportation.
Increased ridership will enhance air quality, open up parking spaces, and improve livability for all Rogue
Valley residents.
Graf emphasized the importance of not meeting outside of the regular commission meetings. Viéville volunteered to
call Paige Townsend at RVTD and then will relay the message to Fleury who will notify the commission via email.
Graf said RVTD would be having a meeting at 5:30 p.m. on March 22nd at Jackson Creek Pizza in Medford to discuss
transit.
Graf asked if there were any thoughts about a bus rapid transit center vs an internal circulator. Graf said he does not
know if we can do both, with the amount of money we have and we would need to narrow it down. Barth said that
RVTD has no money or plans to do a circulator with us. Graf said if we could pull off getting a grant RVTD would be
delighted to come work with us. Barth asked about the last grant they had. Fleury said the last grant was a three-year
grant to expand hours and service, which we helped and supported during the process. Barth said RVTD let the ball
drop on renewing the grant to continue the services. He asked if the services would last only as long as the grant was
in place or are there steps that could be taken so this time it actually works for the long-term? Graf said we have to
get external funding because we are not going to get it from the City alone or from RVTD. If we decide to go ahead
with any of these plans, we should look at what is most sustainable and not live from grant to grant.
Viéville mentioned someone looking into getting electric buses started. Young said someone had offered to donate
money to get things going. He said there has to be a plan first before looking into this. Graf said their vision would be
on the table if our highest priority was to look into an internal circulator, but we may decide there is another way to go
than their vision for the trolley. He thinks if we are moving tourists around, it should be a public/private partnership
and the City should not have to do that all on its own. If we are moving from low-income housing to jobs in downtown
Ashland, that would be more on the City than on the business community. He said either way we do it; we have to
figure out how many people need to be moved, where they are, and something that is sustainable because no one is
going to give us a grant if we cannot demonstrate that it will make a real difference. Viéville said there is a decent
intra-city route currently that does not seem to be going away anytime soon. Young said this levy would expand the
hours. Graf said we do not have control over the hours or routes. That is why the bus rapid transit is different from
Route 10. It would not move people around within Ashland but it would move people into Ashland efficiently. There
are a lot of people who live outside of Ashland and work in Ashland, if they had a decent transit system that did not
Transportation Commission
February 25, 2016
Page 4 of 6
take an hour each way. When you tradeoff an hour on the bus for fifteen minutes in your car; it is not much of a
tradeoff. The express bus has to be competitive.
Newberry asked about how the commission decided to prioritize projects, if they are dependent upon funding or what
they think is important. Graf said they always prioritize what they think is important and then staff seeks the funding
for it. He said he does not know if there is any more funding available for different packages here. Fleury said RVTD
was previously funded by a Congestion Mitigation Air Quality (CMAQ) grant, and a greenhouse gas reduction grant,
which is one funding mechanism for transit. The other funding mechanism would be to go after a Connect Oregon
grant on the next cycle. They allow caveats for mobility and employment benefits, so if a study was done on either
the circulator or the bus rapid transit route, you could show a benefit to mobility or employment.
Young said we are at the painful stage where we need to decide what we want. He said do we play it safe or go for it.
There are community members who are ready to do some work and start fighting for a cause. He asked if we keep
moving stuff around because it will not work, or do we go for it? Do we stay in the safety zone or stretch for
something bigger? Graf said we need to figure out where we stretch because we have previously stayed in the safety
zone. He said he is not sure that we have enough money and staff time or support to go after both a bus rapid transit
and an internal circulator with the resources we have. Viéville said she sees them as different things; the rapid transit
goes outside of Ashland, by bringing people to and from Ashland, while the circulator will benefit the citizens of
Ashland.
Amarotico asked if it was premature to ask each Commissioner, what they thought was the most important project on
the list. Graf said we do have a commitment to our employees and businesses in Ashland to help them get to and
from Ashland, and around Ashland. Bender said there is Valley Lift for people who have disabilities. Viéville said it
does not go everywhere though and it only carries one person at a time.
Amarotico asked if anyone knew the statistics for people who live and work in Ashland or live in Ashland and
commute outside of Ashland for work. Fleury said he believes there is a graph break down in the Transportation
System Plan (TSP). Amarotico said it would be interesting to see these statistics because that could affect their
decision on what project to take on. Graf said he does not think we have statistics on employees in Ashland.
Supposedly there are 3,000 employees that work in downtown Ashland and if, hypothetically, 2,000 of them come
from Medford, that is a lot of people. If we had those statistics, it would help us decide on what the priorities are. He
said we need to be data driven. In addition, we do not want to build something just because the people are there, we
want to make sure they will actually use it so we need to have public input from the people we are counting on to use
the service.
The commission each said what they thought was most important on the project list:
Barth: Internal circulator
Amarotico: Internal circulator around Route 8
Newberry: First priority is existing route, second priority is internal circulator, and third priority is the bus rapid transit
Viéville: Internal circulator
Bender: Internal circulator
Young: First priority is internal circulator and second priority is bus rapid transit
Wilson: First priority is extending service hours and second priority is internal circulator. She said from an SOU
perspective, she said students feel stuck when they cannot go anywhere on the weekends or if they want to take
classes in Medford at the Higher Education Center building they cannot because they do not have a way to get there.
Graf: Bus rapid transit
Graf said we need to do a study on what would be the best route for an internal Ashland circulator. He said the clear
consensus of the commission is to work on the internal circulator.
Accident Report
Barth asked about the accident on Monday on Walker and Siskiyou. MacLennan said the person driving was
intoxicated on acid and estimated to be driving at speeds up to 90 mph when he side swiped a light pole and hit the
guardrail and pedestrian pole on the sidewalk, which landed in the middle of the gas station parking lot. Debris was
Transportation Commission
February 25, 2016
Page 5 of 6
scattered 150-375 feet from the scene of the accident. The driver and passenger were seat belted in and the
passenger in the back was asleep and ejected. The back seat passenger died on scene.
Barth said he has noticed more deer on Siskiyou and asked if there was something, they could do to help. Fleury
said there have been signs put out on Main St. by the Breadboard and the trestle.
OLD BUSINESS
Tolman Creek and Siskiyou Blvd. Stop Sign
Fleury said he will have all of this together for the public hearing next month and Dan Dorrell from ODOT will be at
the meeting. He said he has been verbally letting the word out for the public hearing. Dorrell has a design of the
intersection that he will bring. It will be a plain four-way stop and a flasher was not recommended.
FOLLOW UP ITEMS
Downtown Parking and Multi Modal Circulation Study Update-Improvement Projects
Fleury said the project list was given to the Downtown Committee. These are all the projects that are in the TSP
along with a couple of safety improvements, which include the mini roundabout improvement at Hargadine/Pioneer,
and the other one is the crosswalk at Third St. and Lithia St. We are also looking at the bicycle boulevards on B St.
and A St. He said that A St. has signs, but there are potential improvements along A St. that we are going to look at
when we do a capital project to replace the sewer and water lines for the storm drain system. The B St. bicycle
corridor will be looked at to implement a potential 4-way stop at Fourth and Eighth Streets to break up the long run
between Second St. and Mountain Ave.
He said the Downtown Committee is going to start talking about the three lane to two-lane configuration within the
downtown area tying in N. Main and Siskiyou Blvd. They will also begin discussing converting the Beaver Slide to
only being accessible to pedestrians and bikes at their next meeting.
Graf asked if the projects that were not in the TSP would come to the Transportation Commission for approval.
Fleury said the Downtown Committee will make recommendations and the additional items should come back to the
Transportation Commission for discussion. Young said the Downtown Committee will decide what to support and
then it will come to Transportation Commission and then to the Council for final decision. Graf said he thinks that
most of this should come back to the Transportation Commission for recommendations.
Young said next week at the Downtown Committee we will be discussing the multi-modal plan. Young said Faught is
confident that the plan will be approved.
INFORMATIONAL ITEMS
TC-chair presentation to Council-February 16, 2016
Graf said he presented to the Council about the 4-way stop crosswalk on N. Main St. He was asked if they were
going to put flashers at all the crosswalks and told them we were studying that. He said we still do not have the
modeling on how well that will work with the flasher. There is a possibility that a light at Wimer St. might be back on
the table. If there is a light at Wimer St. that may solve the crossing problem and be more predictable than a flasher
that people turn on at random. The challenge is, if you put in flashers, then the traffic is interrupted at random and
could stack up, whereas if you put in the light for safety, it does not have to meet all the warrants necessarily. The
problem is too many people turn right out of there, so you cannot count them. Fleury said right turns do not count for
movements. Graf said if we decide that having a light is safer, we might be able to get it through. Fleury said if an
intersection were there, we would continue with the navigators and all four corners. He said Kim Parducci, Traffic
Engineer, will have to do an analysis of the intersection and then the discussions will begin with ODOT because it is
their jurisdiction.
Graf said he spoke about Grandview to the Council and they did not have any questions. Barth asked if anything has
changed on Grandview yet. Fleury said no, all the surveying is done and now the engineers are working on the
design section for the roadway.
Graff also mentioned the transit work to the Council and they asked if the Transportation Commission was talking
Transportation Commission
February 25, 2016
Page 6 of 6
with RVTD.
Bike Share Expansion
Faught met with Connie Wilkerson from United Way about expanding the bike share into the downtown area. They
did not talk about Zagster specifically but doing a bike share to tie in areas around Ashland. This topic will come back
to the Commission to figure out good locations for the bike share. Graf said United Way has a grant and half the
decision is where someone wants to put it.
Making an Impact Newsletter (February)
Graf asked how many people get this in an email. No one has been receiving it in their email. Fleury said he would
remove it from the hard copy packet and only include it in the email packet.
COMMISSION OPEN DISCUSSION
Barth asked about the loading zone in front of Liquid Assets. Young said the yellow was expanded and one space
was taken out. Fleury said the two bus stops have been relocated. Wimer St. was moved 100 yards east and the one
on Laurel St. was moved about 100 yards east to be located closer to downtown.
Viéville said she has a question for the Downtown Committee about the truck stops on First Street. When they are
going to re-do the truck parking are they going to be anywhere close to the bus stops? Right now the bus stops in
front of the hotel on First Street where trucks unload and then the bus will not stop there and keeps going. Young
said there will not be a loading zone in front of the hotel and the multi-modal plan will be about implementing
designated, visible stops.
Wilson asked if anyone was a part of the steering committee for the Coordinated Public Transit Human Services
Transportation Plan. It is part of the United Way Ride Plan updates. She will be attending the meeting and will report
to the commission.
Bender said for a future topic at the meeting he would like to include car sharing.
Young asked for more clarification on the bike share. Graf said this is in a very formative stage. Up until now we have
been letting United Way do it. The goal is to go beyond this and think about where we want to have bike share
locations. It will be put on the agenda at a future meeting and staff will find out what Zagster has to say about working
with us and have staff identify what other bike shares are available. Young asked if we can consider this as an
agenda item and think about the important places. Graf said this should be placed on the agenda in April. Barth said
it would be nice to know what United Way is doing in advance to see if they are still pursuing their own. According to
Faught, the Water St. location is doing very well. Young said we should designate the prime locations and go from
there.
ADJOURNMENT
Meeting was adjourned at 7:57pm.
Respectfully submitted,
Kyndra Irigoyen
Public Works Administrative Assistant
Underage Drinking + Driving:
The Ultimate Party Foul
“Most party fouls are harmless. Sure, your
unsuccessful crowd surf might make you the
star of a few
embarrassing pics,
but the fail won’t
follow you for
long. Get caught
underage drinking
and driving,
though, and you
can lose your
license – and your
freedom.”
So begins the first national public service
campaign headed by NHTSA, to prevent
underage drinking and driving.
As part of this campaign, a new PSA has been
released, along with a website. The PSA begins
with underage drinkers committing various
“party fouls”, and ends with “the ultimate party
foul” - drinking and driving.
The site’s “Excuses” page lists amusingly phrased
one-liners meant to prompt teens to imagine
realistic ways to save face while deflecting any
peer pressure experienced when declining an
offer for an unsafe ride - before the moment
arises.
Also featured is a free “Emoji
Keyboard App” educating young
drivers about the consequences of
underage drinking and driving via
playful “sticker” emoticons - small
digital icons used to express an idea,
emotion, etc. (see example at left.)
Motor vehicle crashes are the leading
cause of death among teens in
America, and almost half of teens
killed in crashes are the drivers
themselves. Despite a minimum legal drinking
age of 21 in all 50 states, almost 1/4 of young
drivers involved in fatal traffic crashes had
alcohol in their systems.
All year round - but especially as the Prom and
Graduation seasons grow near - please join
us in telling teens that underage drinking and
driving is the Ultimate Party Foul.
by modernizing our approach to traffic safety,”
said Leah Shahum, Director of the Vision Zero
Network, a national nonprofit campaign. “For
too long, communities
have accepted traffic
fatalities and injuries as
normal. The Vision Zero
Focus Cities are standing
up to challenge ‘business
as usual’ and to show
cities around the world that these tragedies are
unacceptable and preventable.”
Find out what other cities are participating, and
learn more about the Focus Cities program.
M aking I mpactan
March 2016 - Volume 3, Issue 6
Making an Impact..........................................OregonImpact.org........................................................ 1
Portland Announced as
Vision Zero Focus City
Portland has been announced
as one of 10 focus cities that
have announced plans to step
up efforts to eliminate traffic
fatalities and severe injuries
among all road users by
joining the new Vision Zero
Focus Cities program.
Other participating West Coast cities include
Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Seattle.
“These cities are the pioneers who will save lives
Making an Impact..........................................OregonImpact.org........................................................ 2
Janelle Lawrence
Executive Director
Contact Us
Funded through
a grant from
ODOT Transportation
Safety Division
Subscribe Donate
How to Use a Keyless
Ignition System Safely
More and more manufacturers are
adding keyless ignition systems
to their vehicles. Watch NHTSA’s
“Understanding Your Keyless
Ignition” video and read the
following tips below to get to
know the technology better.
1. What is a Keyless Ignition
System? Keyless Ignition
Systems, as they are commonly
called, usually consist of a
key fob carried by the driver
which takes over the functions
of a traditional metal key.
Verification of the correct
device is done electronically
when the driver attempts to
start the vehicle usually by
pushing a button or turning a
rotary switch.
2. Are all Keyless Ignition
Systems the same? Keyless
Ignition Systems differ across
models, with different types of
switches, and varying in the type
of alerts made to the driver if an
unsafe condition occurs (e.g., not
putting the transmission in “park”
before shutting down the propulsion
system, or leaving the vehicle while the
propulsion system is still active). The
Vehicle Owner’s Manual should be
consulted for details on how a vehicle
is operated in normal and emergency
situations, and for the alerts that the
vehicle sounds.
3. When were Keyless Ignition
Systems made available in
America? Keyless Ignition Systems
first became available in the early
2000s in luxury models, but have
migrated to more mainstream
vehicles.
4. What are the dangers with
vehicles that feature these systems?
NHTSA’s concerns are drivers
who shut off the propulsion
system without putting their
vehicle in “park” and walk away
from the vehicle, leaving it prone
to roll away; drivers who do
put their vehicle in park, but
inadvertently leave the propulsion
system active increasing the
risk of carbon monoxide
poisoning in a closed
environment; and drivers who
do not know how to shut down
the propulsion system of their
vehicle in the event of any on-
road emergency.
5. What can I do to make
sure my car is turned off?
Follow some basic safety tips
like making sure your car is in
“park” before shutting down
the propulsion system, making
sure the propulsion system is
shut down, applying the vehicle’s
parking brake, checking your
driver’s manual for detailed
instructions on how to operate
your vehicle properly, and watch
NHTSA’s safety video on keyless
ignition systems for basic safety
tips.
Get the Word Out
on Pregnancy and
Safety Belts
NHTSA has revised a
flyer on Pregnancy and
Seat Belts.
The flyer includes
updated agency
recommendations,
including how to safely
position oneself relative
to the steering wheel,
and other matters.
Please share with your
community,
as appropriate!
Making an Impact..........................................OregonImpact.org........................................................ 3
Small Overlap Crash
Protection, Front Crash
Prevention Key to IIHS’
2016 Top Safety Picks
Nearly 50 vehicles meet tougher
criteria for 2016 to take home the
Insurance Institute for Highway
Safety’s (IIHS) Top Safety Pick+
award, earning good ratings
in all five IIHS
crashworthiness
evaluations and an
advanced or higher
rating for front crash
prevention. An
additional 13 models
qualify for Top Safety
Pick.
“We asked auto
manufacturers to
do more this year to
qualify for our safety awards, and
they delivered,” says Adrian Lund,
IIHS president. “For the first time,
a good rating in the challenging
small overlap front crash test is a
requirement to win, in addition to
an available front crash prevention
system. How that system rates
determines whether a vehicle will
earn Top Safety Pick+ or Top Safety
Pick.”
The baseline requirements for both
awards are good ratings in the small
overlap front, moderate overlap
front, side, roof strength and head
restraint tests, as well as a standard
or optional front crash prevention
system. The 48 winners of the “plus”
award have a superior- or advanced-
rated front crash prevention system
with automatic braking capabilities.
These vehicles must stop or slow
down without driver intervention
before hitting a target in tests at 12
mph, 25 mph or both. Models with
a basic-rated front crash prevention
system, which typically only issues
a warning and doesn’t brake, qualify
for Top Safety Pick.
The 2016 winner’s circle includes
some redesigned models with
improved frontal crash protection
and autobrake features, which
help to prevent or mitigate certain
frontal crashes.
In the award count, Toyota leads
manufacturers with 9 2016 Top
Safety Pick+ winners, including
the popular Camry midsize car,
while Honda picks
up 8 Top Safety
Pick+ awards and
one Top Safety Pick.
Volkswagen/Audi
has seven plus-award
winners. 6 Subaru
models qualify for
Top Safety Pick+.
The Chrysler 200 is
the only domestic
model to qualify for
a 2016 Top Safety
Pick+ award.
“Ask for autobrake and forward
collision warning features when
you’re out shopping for a new
vehicle,” Lund says. “Look for
good ratings in IIHS evaluations
and at least 4 of 5 stars from
NHTSA.”
Transportation Safety Workshops
TREC Events UP Highway Safety Workshops OSU Kiewit Center
Topic Date Time Registration
TREC Webinar: Freight and Livability 3/31 10 am Register
TREC Webinar: Kaiser e-Bike Study 4/26 10 am Register
UP: Free Transportation Safety Workshop in Happy Valley 3/16 9 am - 4 pm Register
UP: Free Transportation Safety Workshop in Oregon City 3/23 8 am - 3 pm Register
UP: Free Transportation Safety Workshop in Portland 3/30 9 am - 4 pm Register
Kiewit Center Workshop: Highway Safety Manual 3/22 - 3/26 All Day Register
TREC Workshops are
typically held at PSU.
Prevention Tips:
Seat Belt Entanglement
Problem: A child within reach of a
seat belt may become entangled if
he or she pulls the seat belt all the
way out and wraps the belt around
his or her head, neck, or waist.
The majority of seat belts have
a locking
mechanism that
is activated when
the seat belt is
pulled all the
way out from
the retractor.
This feature is
designed for
child seat installation. In instances
when the locking feature activates,
the child may not be able to free
him or herself.
This can happen if you do not
properly restrain your child, for
example, if you let the child lie
down or sleep on the vehicle
seat, instead of being properly
restrained. Older children who
are no longer in a child restraint
system, can become entangled by
pulling a seat belt all the way out of
the retractor, or by playing with an
unused seat belt.
If you used your vehicle’s Lower
Anchors and Tether for Children
(LATCH) system to install the
car seat, your child may be able to
Date City Location Address Time
3/12 Portland Legacy Good Samaritan 1015 NW 22nd Ave 9 am - 12 pm
3/12 Hillsboro Tuality Health Edu Ctr 334 SE 8th Ave 9 am - 11:30 am
3/12 Sherwood Sherwood Police 20495 SW Borchers Dr 9 am - 1 pm
3/16 Redmond Redmond Fire 341 NW Dogwood Ave 2 pm - 4 pm
3/19 Vancouver* Peace Health* 92nd Ave Entrance 8:45 am - 2 pm*
3/19 Beaverton Park Place Center 4915 SW Griffith Dr 9 am - 12 pm
3/31 Forest Grove Forest Grove Fire 1919 Ash St 3 pm - 5 pm
3/31 Eugene Eugene Fire 1725 W 2nd Ave 4 pm - 6 pm
4/2 Newberg Newberg Fire 3100 Middlebrook Dr 9 am - 11 am
4/7 Redmond Redmond Fire 341 NW Dogwood Ave 11 am - 2 pm
Speed Limit Increase on Select
Central/Eastern Oregon Highways
Along with spring flowers, motorists
traveling through central and eastern
Oregon will see new speed limit signs
popping up.
Effective March 1, 2016, Oregon’s HB
3402 and HB 4047 allows travelers to
legally drive higher speeds on Interstate
84 between The Dalles and the Idaho
border.
A ten-mile stretch of I-82 between
I-84 and the Washington border, plus
several secondary highways in central
and eastern Oregon will also see speed
limits increased. These include portions
of U.S. 20, U.S. 26, U.S. 95, U.S. 97, U.S.
197, U.S. 395, OR 31, OR 78 and OR
205.
With increased speeds, comes increased
responsibility. Visit the ODOT
Communications Web Page for a full
description of law changes in HB 3402
and HB 4047, as well as locations in the
Speed Increase Map.
Making an Impact..........................................OregonImpact.org........................................................ 4
reach an unused belt.
Prevention Tips
• Do not let children play in or
around cars.
• Never leave a child
unattended in or around a
vehicle.
• Always ensure
children are properly
restrained.
• Teach children
that seat belts are not
toys.
• Be aware that
some seat belts have a
retractor that locks if
pulled all the way out.
• If a child has an unused seat
belt within reach:
»Buckle unused seat belts.
Pull the seat belt out
all the way to the end
without yanking. Then,
feed the excess webbing
back into the retractor.
»If a child seat is installed
with LATCH, consider
completing the steps
above before you install
the child seat. Always
consult your child seat
and vehicle owner’s
manual for installation
instructions.
Events are tentative due to weather.
For all event listings, appointment options, best practice information, visit the Child Safety Seat Resource Center.
Car Seat Check-Up Events and Fitting Stations
*Peace Health Event: Registration required by 8:45 am for 9-10 am class. First come, first served. Must attend class to participate in the clinic, which is held from 10 am - 2 pm.