Vulnerable Road User (VRU) Safety Assessment Meeting for Howard County

Virtual meetig to learn about the Maryland Department of Transportation State Highway Administration’s (SHA) Vulnerable Road User (VRU) Safety Assessment. This meeting, focused on western Maryland and Howard County (SHA Districts 6 and 7), will be held on Thursday, July 20, 2023, from 4 - 6 p.m. 

The purpose of Maryland’s VRU Safety Assessment is to evaluate the state’s safety performance for pedestrians and cyclists, and to develop a plan to improve safety for these travelers.  

A vulnerable road user is someone who is walking, cycling, or rolling. These people are particularly susceptible to being killed or injured in a crash, and they account for a growing share of all transportation fatalities, both in Maryland and throughout the United States. For this reason, the Federal Highway Administration requires all states to complete a Vulnerable Road User Safety Assessment by November 15, 2023.  

During the meeting, we will present information on SHA’s recently released Pedestrian Safety Action Plan, explain how the VRU Safety Assessment is building on the Pedestrian Safety Action Plan, and illustrate locations throughout the region that are characterized as “high-risk areas” for people walking and cycling.

You will also have the opportunity to provide input on VRU safety needs in the identified high-risk areas. That input can be provided during the meeting and through an online survey. This survey is open now and will close on July 31, 2023 at 5 p.m. Information that you and other interested parties provide will be incorporated into the final Vulnerable Road User Safety Assessment, which will be published this fall.

If interested in attending this meeting, pleae email: jzheng@mdot.maryland.gov, Jianyang (Jay) Zheng, Ph.D., P.E.

Maryland Department of Transportation State Highway Administration