Roadway Safety magazine’s Winter issue looks at supply chain issues and includes insights from ATSSA members as they grappled with the challenge over the past year.

The issue is now available online and also explores variable speed limit zones in place across the country and what different jurisdictions found as far as advantages and challenges.

You can also gain insights from outgoing ATSSA Board Chair Greg Driskell and get a peek into the perspective of incoming Chair Jeff Johnson.

FREDERICKSBURG, Va. (Feb. 8, 2022) – Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg confirmed today that he will deliver keynote remarks at ATSSA’s 52^nd Annual Convention & Traffic Expo.

Buttigieg is expected to discuss the National Roadway Safety Strategy released Jan. 27 by the U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) as well as provide insights into the Infrastructure Investment & Jobs Act (IIJA) and its impact on roadway safety.

“We are honored that Transportation Secretary Buttigieg is making the time to address our members and we look forward to hearing his insights pertaining to roadway safety and how our industry can partner with USDOT to dramatically reduce roadway fatalities,” said ATSSA President & CEO Stacy Tetschner.

ATSSA’s Annual Report for 2021 is now available. This year’s theme is “Resilience & Records” and lays out the many achievements that took place across the Association in a year that posed significant challenges for our members such as supply chain disruptions and a nationwide worker shortage.

The report opens with a letter from President & CEO Stacy Tetschner who touches on issues from passage of the bipartisan infrastructure package to the creation of a Roadway Worker Protection Council, which emerged from the 2021 Convention & Traffic Expo.

The report also includes a list of company members that joined ATSSA in the last year, a review of updates to ATSSA’s training options and insights gained from a member survey commissioned in 2021 as well as other highlights from the past year.

ATSSA’s 2022 Convention & Traffic Expo reunites members of the roadway safety infrastructure in Tampa, Florida, for five days of education, innovation, collaboration and inspiration.

We anticipate nearly 3,000 in attendance this year, including more than 150 department of transportation (DOT) officials representing 40 states.

“I’m looking forward to taking part in the first in-person Convention & Traffic Expo of my tenure,” said ATSSA President & CEO Stacy Tetschner, who joined the Association in March 2020. “Last year’s virtual event exceeded my expectations but I know for our members nothing can replace the tangible and intangible advantages of gathering in person with other industry experts so I am eager to be part of the experience.”

Earlier today, the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) released guidelines for the Highway Safety Improvement Program (HSIP) under the new Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA).

The guidance outlines eligibilities under the HSIP, along with defining guidance for new special rules that  fall under the HSIP.

While the majority of the HSIP guidance remains intact from the previous highway authorization, ATSSA’s Government Relations team highlighted a few changes to the guidance under the IIJA.

The names of 10 men who were killed while working in a roadway work zone have been added to the National Work Zone Memorial.

Their deaths took place as long ago as March of 1966 and as recently as November 2021. Each man had reported for another day of work when tragedy struck, leaving behind wives, sons, daughters and parents to grieve.

The addition of these 10 men for 2022 brings the total number of lives honored on the National Work Zone Memorial to 1,602.

Traffic fatalities increased 12% for the first nine months of 2021 compared to the same period in 2020, marking the biggest percentage increase in the history of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) fatality reporting process, which projects fatality data.

The Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS) provides statistical projections for traffic fatalities nationwide, looking at the first nine months of the year in this report that provides an early estimate of motor vehicle traffic fatalities.

The 12% increase is based on an estimated 31,720 people killed in motor vehicle crashes nationwide in the first nine months of 2021 compared to 28,325 killed in the first nine months of 2020. That is the highest number of fatalities for nine months since 2006.

The National Roadway Safety Strategy (NRSS) unveiled by the U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) on Thursday focuses on moving the U.S. towards zero roadway deaths by taking a safe systems approach that includes six central themes.

The themes laid out are that: deaths and serious injuries are unacceptable; human mistakes are inevitable; humans are vulnerable to injury and death; there is a shared responsibility for these incidents; safety can be and should be proactive; and redundancy is critical. The strategy introduced by Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg also focuses on five safety issues.

“ATSSA applauds Secretary Buttigieg on the release of the first National Roadway Safety Strategy, especially with its call for the enhanced protection of roadway construction workers," ATSSA President & CEO Stacy Tetschner said. "Shining a brighter spotlight on the need to dramatically reduce roadway fatalities is critically necessary.”

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) is withdrawing its vaccination and testing emergency temporary standard, effective Wednesday.

The move follows a Jan. 13 ruling by the Supreme Court blocking a Biden administration effort to require employees of large employers to get a COVID-19 vaccine or undergo weekly testing and wear a mask.

The court ruled 6-3 in the employer case with the court’s conservative majority concluding the administration overstepped its authority by seeking to impose the OSHA vaccine-or-test rule on U.S. businesses with at least 100 employees. More than 80 million people would have been affected.

FREDERICKSBURG, Va. (Jan. 25, 2022) – The American Traffic Safety Services Association  selected 14 companies to participate in its 2022 New Products Rollout (NPRO), held in conjunction with the 52nd Annual Convention & Traffic Expo taking place Feb. 11-15 at the Tampa (Florida) Convention Center.

Each year, more than 3,500 people attend the largest roadway safety tradeshow in North America to see some of the latest innovations in the roadway safety infrastructure industry. The products submitted as part of NPRO are comprised of a wide range of devices designed to save lives on our nation’s roadways.

“The 2022 lineup for ATSSA’s New Products Rollout features products that provide a snapshot of some of the latest advancements made in the past year,” said ATSSA Director of Innovation & Technical Services Eric Perry. “I love this event because it provides a great opportunity to hear firsthand from our members about the latest and greatest products coming to the marketplace as well as the benefits of using them.”