Most fatal crashes are preventable and one death on our roads is too many.
ODOT’s Vulnerable User Crash Response Program aims to improve safety for people walking, biking, or using a low-speed personal conveyance (such as a wheelchair or scooter) through quick-build, low-cost actions.
A dedicated multi-discipline team meets monthly to analyze recent fatal crashes on state highways, identify contributing factors, and recommend rapid safety treatments such as enhanced crosswalks, signal timing, or vegetation trimming.
Who are Vulnerable Road Users?
We use the term “vulnerable road user” to describe a person who is unprotected by an outside shield, like in a car or truck, when they are traveling. They are considered vulnerable because they have a greater risk of injury in any crash with a motor vehicle.
Vulnerable road users can include a person:
- Walking, skating, or using a scooter.
- Using a wheelchair or other personal mobility device.
- Using a bicycle, manual or electric-assisted (ORS 801.258).
- Using other active or non-motorized means of transportation.
- Standing outside their motor vehicle (for example: due to a vehicle malfunction, an illness, need to install traction devices, or other immediate need).
Oregon law (ORS 801.608) also includes highway workers and people operating motorcycles, mopeds, or farm equipment in the definition of vulnerable road users. ODOT has other programs that focus on these users, so the Vulnerable User Crash Response Program only addresses crashes involving the types of road users included in the bulleted list above.
Taking Action to Increase Safety for Vulnerable Users
ODOT is delivering this work with State Safety Priority Funds from the 2024-2027 cycle of the
Statewide Transportation Improvement Program (STIP).
The program includes a two-track approach to addressing vulnerable user safety on the state highway system:
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Responsive – We assess fatal vulnerable user crashes as they occur and respond with quick-build projects, as appropriate.
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Systemic – We identify locations with land use, vulnerable populations, and highway characteristics that are historically associated with higher rates of serious vulnerable user crashes. We select low-cost improvements that can be applied broadly within one year along a corridor or in a region regardless of the most recent crashes.
Our goal is to learn from crashes, increase our understanding of how users – drivers and vulnerable users – interact with the existing infrastructure, and support agency-wide efforts to improve overall safety outcomes.
Responsive Fatal Crash Review
Our team meets monthly to review recent vulnerable user fatal crashes, discuss site conditions, and identify potential contributing factors to crashes.
The team uses consistent review criteria to determine if a crash is eligible for the VUCR program. If a crash is eligible, the team identifies potential rapid response safety countermeasures to forward to our region offices for further investigation. The region office considers the suitability of each identified countermeasure as well as the feasibility for quick implementation. The region office develops a plan for designing and constructing the most promising countermeasures.
If the most suitable safety improvements at a location are outside the scope of the VUCR program, those recommendations are forwarded to the appropriate ODOT program manager for future funding consideration. If no improvements are suitable for a crash site, that finding is noted in our case file.
Systemic Safety Response
This program also recognizes the value in proactive improvements. The VUCR program identified three corridors (U.S. 101 in Newport, OR 540 in North Bend, and U.S. 20 in Bend) for systemic safety improvements. These projects include flashing beacons, signing, and/or marking upgrades at several crosswalks, illumination, and bike lane markings. The projects are expected to be completed in 2026 or 2027. See the latest annual program report for additional information.