Tualatin Focuses on Traffic Safety

There is growing concern, in Oregon and nationally, for traffic safety. Tualatin is taking steps to avoid crashes, prevent injuries and save lives – and these measures are beginning to show results.

Here are the numbers for Tualatin. In 2019, there were 360 vehicle crashes on City streets – about one per day. Crashes involving bicyclists or pedestrians are less frequent, but more often lead to serious injuries or fatalities.

Complete traffic safety data isn’t available yet for 2020, but there is cause for concern. In the early months of the pandemic, traffic volumes dropped off as many more people took to the streets on foot or bicycle. Today, traffic volumes have returned to pre-pandemic levels and drivers often find themselves sharing the roadway with people who are walking and biking.

National Safety Council data shows, despite a drop in vehicle miles, fatalities are up. Portland had 54 traffic deaths in 2020 – the most since 1996. Around one-third of the fatalities were people who were walking and biking. “A terrible year,” as Portland’s Transportation Director, Chris Warner, sums up. Many of the incidents were along “high crash corridors”.

Unlike Portland, Tualatin’s crashes are spread all over town. So the City has enlisted residents to help pinpoint trouble spots, through the Neighborhood Traffic Safety Program. In 2020, 243 safety projects were suggested by residents. A total of 35 traffic safety projects will be completed by 2023, paid for by the City’s $20 million voter-approved bond program – Tualatin Moving Forward.

Mike McCarthy, P.E., the City’s senior transportation engineer, explains Tualatin’s tool chest of traffic safety improvements includes a variety of methods to fit different situations such as:

• Driver feedback signs
• High visibility crosswalks
• Buffered bike lanes
• Better street lighting

“We are taking proactive steps to prevent crashes”, says McCarthy.

One of the techniques is the leading pedestrian interval signal. With this method, signal timing is modified to give pedestrians a 5-second head start to begin crossing before vehicles get the green light. This small adjustment quickly improved safety at the busy intersection of Boones Ferry Road and Ibach Street, near Tualatin High School. Other locations have seen similarly positive results.

Another effective tool is the rectangular rapid-flashing beacon (RRFB) that helps pedestrians cross busy streets more safely. The beacon’s high visibility alerts drivers under all weather conditions. The National Cooperative Highway Research Program (NCHRP) reports the crossings with flashing signals cut crashes involving pedestrians almost in half (47%). By the end of 2020, these flashing beacons have been placed at ten crosswalks around Tualatin.

     *Source: Oregon Department of Transportation data for City of Tualatin.

To learn more or suggest a traffic safety project in your neighborhood, go to www.TualatinMovingForward.com.