Safe Routes For All
Every Route. Every Person.
Safely Connected.
New Haven is Committed to Ensuring Safe and Accessible Routes for All.
Our Mission
We want our residents and visitors to take transit, bike, roll, stroll and drive to where they want to go.
That’s why we’ve adopted:
Join Us at Community Day with the Yale Center for British Art!
We’ll be Building a Neighborhood Together through three interactive stations focused on “Places,” “Safe Streets,” and “People and Mobility,” where students and community members will work together to construct a city layout. Inspired by Chapel Street as the central artery, the layout will feature landmarks modeled after real NHV locations spanning the corridor. As we explore the ins and outs of street design, participants will also learn how our transportation network operates and the role each of us plays in keeping our streets safe. Families can test their knowledge by answering “Curbside IQ” trivia questions or completing a mini-quiz for a chance to win a prize, while making a pledge to practice safe travel habits throughout New Haven!
Building Safe Systems
The U.S. Department of Transportation’s Safe System Approach focuses on eliminating fatal and serious injuries for everyone on the road.
This approach acknowledges the fact that people make mistakes and emphasizes human vulnerability to the forces that occur during a crash.
Knowing this, shared transportation infrastructure in New Haven is proactively designed and managed to prevent fatal and serious injury crashes from occurring, and minimize the physical harm caused when mistakes are made and/or crashes occur.
Our Commitment to Safe Routes
By 2030, we aim to reduce traffic-related injuries and fatalities by 25% in New Haven.
Our Mission
Over the past few years, we have worked on a series of traffic calming measures and safety improvements across New Haven to ensure everyone can travel in a safe and accessible environment. Traffic safety countermeasures create a comfortable and connected network for people of all ages and abilities.
We’ve implemented speed management strategies across four tiers:
I. Remove Severe Conflicts
II. Reduce Vehicle Speeds
III. Manage Conflicts in Time
IV. Increase Attentiveness and Awareness
When it comes to serious injury or fatalities, speed is a major factor
Speed management reduces the chances of traffic injuries and frequency of crashes, creating safe routes for pedestrians and bikers sharing the road with drivers.
As you explore the City of New Haven, you are likely to see some of these Safe Route Strategies in action.
35+ miles in New Haven
Nearly a third of these crashes happen when motorists overtake bicyclists. Crashes also happen when bicyclists violate the rules of the road. Bike lanes can create a more predictable environment for everyone.
<5 in New Haven
Road diets, or roadway reconfiguration, can calm traffic and provide better mobility and access for every user. According to the Federal Highway Administration, road diets can have an up to 47% reduction in overall crashes. New Haven has reconfigured busy stretches of downtown on State Street and Long Wharf Drive.
10+ in New Haven
Traffic circles create a uniform path of travel, creating a calmer and more predictable intersection.
60+ in New Haven
Humps aim to reduce driver speeds to 15 to 20 mph on one-way or two-way roads.