AN OLDTIMER SUGGESTS SOME ACTIVITIES FOR IMPROVING ROADSIDE SAFETY

This paper is the author's personal assessment of where we in the United States are with regard to roadside safety and where we are going. He begins with some accident data, summarizes some trends that are under way with emphasis on ones we should promote, describes at least a partial vision of the future, and proposes some activities needed to get there. Section headings are as follows: The Yearning for a Safe Life; Data on Death by Roadside Hazard: Report on a Guerilla War; State DOT Programs: The Band-Aid/Better Mousetrap Approach; Middle-aged Unsafety Hardware; Trends Observed/Activities Suggested to Improve Roadside Safety; The Multifaceted Approach/Strategic Plan; State DOTs: Can They Grapple with Highway Safety Management Systems?; The Roadside Safety Community: Should It Turn Some Corners?; The Auto Industry: Is a Perfectly Safe Vehicle Its Holy Grail?; The Public: Is It Possible to Develop a Highway Safety Constituency?; The Futurists: Is the Automated Highway System Pie in the Sky?; The Oldtimer Sticks His Neck out with the Flume Concept (barriers for channeling traffic on freeways); and Summary: Second Chance for Those Who Dozed in the Middle (a list of 11 future trends that are either under way or should be soon).