“Speed kills” is such a well-known mantra in transportation advocacy circles it’s at risk of becoming trite. So how can activists find new ways to communicate the crucial linkage between speeding drivers and the fatal crashes they cause?
One answer to that question comes from a project by Portland Community College Student Jake Veto. Veto partnered with nonprofit group Oregon Walks to create an interactive map that illustrates pedestrian fatalities in Portland between 2017 and 2020. The 48 locations where people where struck and killed are marked on the map alongside colored street segments. The darker red the color, the higher percentage of speeding on that particular street segment.
The combination of speed data to street segments, combined with the location of the fatality, gives us a new context to understand why people on foot are more likely to be killed in certain places. Veto’s map also allows viewers to click on any marked segment and see the the posted speed limit and the percentage of drivers who disobey it.
The map uses crash data from the Oregon Department of Transportation and speed monitoring data from the Portland Bureau of Transportation.
In addition to all the speed and fatality location data in the main map, Veto also created a general pedestrian fatality heat map. This map helps visualize which parts of the city’s road network people are most at risk of being hit and killed.
Veto’s work has illuminated what could be considered red zones for pedestrian safety. It should be a useful resource for planners, engineers, advocates, and anyone else who spends time on foot on Portland streets.
“Speed kills” is such a well-known mantra in transportation advocacy circles it’s at risk of becoming trite. So how can activists find new ways to communicate the crucial linkage between speeding drivers and the fatal crashes they cause?
One answer to that question comes from a project by Portland Community College Student Jake Veto. Veto partnered with nonprofit group Oregon Walks to create an interactive map that illustrates pedestrian fatalities in Portland between 2017 and 2020. The 48 locations where people where struck and killed are marked on the map alongside colored street segments. The darker red the color, the higher percentage of speeding on that particular street segment.
The combination of speed data to street segments, combined with the location of the fatality, gives us a new context to understand why people on foot are more likely to be killed in certain places. Veto’s map also allows viewers to click on any marked segment and see the the posted speed limit and the percentage of drivers who disobey it.
The map uses crash data from the Oregon Department of Transportation and speed monitoring data from the Portland Bureau of Transportation.
In addition to all the speed and fatality location data in the main map, Veto also created a general pedestrian fatality heat map. This map helps visualize which parts of the city’s road network people are most at risk of being hit and killed.
Veto’s work has illuminated what could be considered red zones for pedestrian safety. It should be a useful resource for planners, engineers, advocates, and anyone else who spends time on foot on Portland streets.