As prepared for delivery 

​Thanks, Bill — I’m happy to be here. I appreciate the League of American Bicyclists for hosting this great event and for your advocacy on behalf of bicyclists like me every day.

I also want to acknowledge Dan Langenkamp. Thank you for all you’ve done, not just in Sarah’s memory, but in memory of so many others who lost their lives or were injured doing what they love...you’ve made each of us safer.

I was recently getting ready for a bike ride through a battlefield in Fredericksburg, where I live, off Lee Drive.

I’ve ridden there a thousand times and had just as many encounters with unsafe drivers… some, not paying attention; some, clearly impaired; many, speeding.

In fact, to the dismay of those who love to bike in the area, the park service puts a thick coating of sand and gravel on the road annually to slow drivers down, which ends up negatively impacting those of us who ride road or tri bikes.

So, there I was packing up and planning my ride when I got; it was taking forever to get out the door.

Just to feel safe riding on this route, or any other road in Spotsylvania County, I’ve had to invest in “stuff.”

I’m not talking about the water bottles, shoes, or even the attire. I’m talking about the “extras” I’ve purchased:​

• ​The Road iD bracelet... $45 for the bracelet, plus $20 annually so first responders have access to my name, address, birthdate, blood type, driver’s license number, emergency contacts, allergies, medications, medical conditions, physicians, medical insurance, and whether I have a living wil.
• The Garmin rearview cycling radar and rear headlight... which ranges anywhere from $149.99 to $399.99.
• My bike headlight…$49 to $99.
• My helmet, which I researched on Virginia Tech’s helmet ratings website…cost: between $65 and $400.
• My helmet front and rear lights…$25 to $69.99.
• My extra mirrors so I can see behind me…$20 to $50.
• And don’t even get me started on the bright, reflective clothing or vest I’m supposed to wear.

You get the point.

That’s when I really got heated. Why?

Because we shouldn’t need all this “stuff.” And, frankly, it gives us a false sense of security.

No one should have to spend hundreds of dollars to “feel” safe riding their bike — whether it’s a trip to the grocery store, a commute to work, or just enjoyment on a Saturday in a battlefield.

Some of us do it because, frankly, getting home safely after using our roads is a gamble when it should be a GIVEN.

That’s true whether you’re biking, walking, rolling, riding, or, yes, even driving.

I firmly believe... the NTSB believes... that safety is a RIGHT — one that every single road user should be able to expect.

Unfortunately, it’s one we’ve had to demand over and over and over. The tragic reality? We’re failing.

​More than 40,000 people are dying on our roads each year. About 1150 of them are on bicycles.

Tens of thousands are injured every...single...year. Injuries that are, in many cases, life altering — both physically and psychologically.

I know I’m preaching to the choir when I say things are trending in the absolute WRONG direction for road users outside of a vehicle.

The bicyclist death toll has soared 58% over the last decade... 58%.

In that same period:

• ​Motorcyclist deaths rose 40%...that’s more than 6300 lives lost.
• And pedestrian fatalities? Up by HALF — to more than 7300 people, gone in a single year.

It’s death and suffering on an unimaginable scale.

Especially when you remember this: Every single death...every single injury...is 100% preventable.

Let me repeat that: Every death and injury on our roads is 100% preventable.

Where is our collective outrage over these losses? I, for one, am outraged.

These aren’t just numbers.

These victims are wives and mothers, like Sarah Langenkamp.

Husbands and fathers, like my friend Larry Willis, who died riding his bike in 2020.

They are children and grandparents, friends, and coworkers.

​Zero fatalities is our goal! Not a single life lost. Not a single injury. ZERO.

We MUST do better.

That’s why I’m here today — why we’re ALL here: To demand better.

Is anyone here from Arizona?

Two years ago, a group of 18 Phoenix-area bicyclists got together for West Valley Cycle’s Saturday morning ride.

At 8:00 am, they were crossing the Cotton Lane Bridge. They were riding in the paved shoulder, which was classified as a bike lane.

The driver of a Ford F-250 pickup truck approached from behind and collided with the right-side railing.

The driver then veered left, hitting the group of bicyclists, and crossed both travel lanes.

He came to a stop in the center of the road.

Two bicyclists lost their life that day: Karen Malisa, a beloved local teacher, and David Hero, a bike mechanic at his family’s business.

Fourteen of the other riders were injured — 9 seriously so; the truck driver was not.

I talked about this crash the last time I joined you.

I remember talking about the news coverage at the time, which said police were considering whether sun glare was a factor in the crash.

The message to cyclists and drivers was, and I quote: “Be mindful of what’s around you on the road.”

​Now, I have incredible compassion for the person who made the statement; his community was in crisis, and he was likely grieving.

The reason I mention it is because that statement accurately sums up our nation’s approach to traffic safety.

For far too long, U.S. road safety efforts have solely centered on educating road users about safe behaviors and enforcing them.

We cannot solve the public health crisis on our roads just by educating drivers...by telling them to “be mindful,” and leaving it at that.

There is so much more we can do and must do to save lives.

To be clear: Education and enforcement are 100% NECESSARY to get us to zero.

In July, the New York Times documented the decline in traffic enforcement since the pandemic.

Their analysis looked at data from 2016 to 2022 across states and large U.S. cities.

In almost every jurisdiction, traffic enforcement declined. By a LOT.

Virginia and Washington, D.C., weren’t part of the analysis, but Maryland was; traffic stops declined 20% across the state over that time.

In the city of Frederick, Maryland, traffic stops plummeted 57%. In Baltimore, down 64%.

The Times article didn’t calculate the death toll over that timeframe — but I did

As traffic stops declined 20% in Maryland, traffic deaths rose 8% statewide.

​There’s a similar pattern in many places across the U.S.; some of the data is even more dramatic.

Now, the article points out that correlation doesn’t equal causation — that we can’t tie the decline in enforcement with the increase in death on our roads.

But that’s an analysis I personally feel very comfortable making. It’s common sense.

Consider the issue of drunk driving, which contributes to a third of all traffic fatalities.

Enforcement of drunk driving laws saves lives, period.

At the same time, the average drunk driver operates a vehicle under the influence 80 times before their first arrest...80 times.

Think about that.

Last August, a little after 8:00 pm in southern New Jersey.

Two men are on riding their bikes on Route 551, a semi-rural road.

They’re brothers; it’s the night before their sister’s wedding, where they’re both groomsmen.

The driver of a Jeep Grand Cherokee — allegedly impaired by alcohol — crashes into the bicyclists.

Neither of the men makes it.

They were 31-year-old NHL player Johnny Gaudreau and his brother Matthew, who was just 29.

We aren’t investigating this crash because it’s being handled as a criminal matter.

​But it’s a heartbreaking reminder: We can’t catch every drunk driver every time.

To save lives, we must also take a good, hard look at the vehicles on our roads...the speeds we allow those vehicles to travel...how our infrastructure is designed...and the care we provide following a crash…all of it, together, so if one part fails, there’s redundancy to keep people safe.

That’s the Safe System Approach.

It’s a philosophy or way of thinking, not a single action or “quick fix.”

The core belief is that even one roadway death or serious injury is too many.

But what does that mean in practice?

The first step is to change the way we think and talk about safety.

When it comes to bicycling, it means we must stop spending so much time talking about what riders should do to mitigate their risk.

Think back to all those gadgets I talked about; those were just a few.

It’s not only unfair to put the full safety responsibility on cyclists...and it IS...it’s also ineffective.

In the Phoenix crash, the bicyclists did everything right: Riding in a large group, staying in the shoulder and wearing helmets, reflectors, and rear lights.

It wasn’t enough to protect Karen and David, or the 14 people who were injured.

A truly safe system would’ve protected them all.

​THAT is systems thinking, and it’s how the NTSB approaches EVERY crash we investigate, in ALL modes of transportation.

The Phoenix bike tragedy is no exception.

We recently completed this investigation so I can tell you the probable cause of the crash: Drowsy driving, or fatigue.

It’s a massive safety problem, even if it’s impossible to accurately quantify; after all, you can’t prove whether a fatally injured person was asleep.

In this case, the driver’s reaction time was so severely affected that he didn’t attempt to brake until about 6 seconds after hitting the barrier.

Now, consider that he was speeding — going about 56 mph even though the posted limit was 45 mph. This gave the driver even less time to react to the impending collision.

We found that this dangerous combination — speeding and delayed reaction time caused by fatigue — contributed to the severity of the bicyclists’ injuries.

I wish preventing tragedy were as simple as educating drivers and bicyclists to be “mindful” of each other.

But we’re missing the bigger picture when we only focus on individuals’ actions.

Instead, we should be talking about how the entire system is failing to protect bicyclists and other road users.

It starts by asking new questions, like, Is the road itself designed to prevent crashes and protect bicyclists?

I know you heard a lot about safe infrastructure at the opening session from Wes Marshall, author of Killed by a Traffic Engineer.

​In Phoenix, we found the highway pavement markings were in excellent condition and the driver had a clear line of sight with no obstructions.

In fact, the paved shoulder exceeded the standard recommended by the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials to accommodate bicycle traffic.

But there wasn’t a separate bike lane — something the NTSB has long supported as a proven safety countermeasure.

We also support safety treatments at intersections and roundabouts, all of which save lives!

The same goes for reducing speeds on our roads, which is especially vital in areas with a lot of bicyclists and pedestrians.

This can be accomplished through infrastructure improvements, like road diets.

We also need to give local jurisdictions the authority to set safe speeds for their own community and implement speed safety camera programs.

Another question that challenges us to think bigger, at the system level: How can vehicles help save lives?

The answer: Vehicle safety technologies, which represent one of the biggest opportunities for progress.

Phoenix: Advanced driver assistance systems, like lane-departure warning or lane-keeping assist — could’ve helped prevent the driver from crossing over lanes of traffic into the bicyclists.

​Intelligent speed assistance technology that, at a minimum, warns drivers when a vehicle is speeding…That technology could’ve helped the Phoenix driver maintain a slower speed, even while fatigued — something that would’ve saved lives and prevented injuries.

Another technology that can help prevent crashes — and not just crashes with other cars and trucks, but with bicyclists, pedestrians, and motorcyclists as well — is automatic emergency braking.

That’s why the NTSB believes it should be mandatory on all new vehicles.

Here in the U.S., we’re still waiting. There’s been some progress, but U.S. regulators are only just now beginning to consider pedestrian AEB.

But in the European Union? They’re testing systems designed to protect pedestrians AND bicyclists.

New passenger vehicles in Europe are also required to have systems that warn drivers who become distracted or drowsy.

The NTSB has LONG supported driver monitoring systems, which can help prevent not just distracted driving and drowsy driving, but impaired driving as well.

Think about that New Jersey crash — the one that killed Johnny and Matthew.

After a horrific New Years Day crash in 2021 that killed nine people, including seven children, we called on NHTSA to require all new vehicles be equipped with passive alcohol impairment detection systems, advanced driver monitoring systems or a combination of both that would prevent or limit the vehicle’s operation if alcohol impairment was detected.

What do these strategies have in common?

They expand the safety burden from individual humans, who are fallible, to all parts of society.

​That’s where it belongs; everyone shares the responsibility for roadway safety.

BUT...and this is an essential point...the burden shouldn’t be shared equally.

David Zipper recently made this point very powerfully. He writes:

Sure, everyone can do something to make collisions less likely. But some can — and should — do far more than others.​

Who has a greater role to play?

• ​Policymakers at the local, state, and federal levels that design and build our roads... who set and enforce the speed limits.
• People who make life-and-death decisions every day at companies that manufacture vehicles — decisions like which safety technology comes standard and how to market new features ethically.
• The people who make our smart phones and decide what safety settings are set as the default.
• And so many more.

Those who create the system must own the lion’s share of the safety burden — not those who simply use it.

Because I know...and you know...that no amount of gear, gadgets, or reflective garb will stop the crisis on our roads.

As bicyclists, we are doing our part.

People on bikes are doing their part. Just as the bicyclists in Phoenix did two years ago.

​We need to keep coming together at events like this to demand... with one voice...that those who can create a safer system actually DO.

The NTSB will keep demanding it alongside you.

Until there’s zero.

Thank you.