Traffic deaths and serious injuries are not only unacceptable, but entirely preventable.

This concept is the basis for the development of the MIC’s Safety Action Plan.  

When complete, it will provide a strategy to make our streets and roads safer for everyone who drives, walks, bikes, rolls, or takes transit.

Its ultimate goal is to enable us to reach zero roadway fatalities and serious injuries throughout the greater Duluth-Superior area.

  • During the planning process, we also aim to engage community leaders and to foster a widespread safety culture to reach this ambitious goal.
  • Based on data analysis and community input, the final product will be an actionable plan that identifies top safety issues, high-risk locations, and a prioritized list of safety improvement projects.
Work Completed to Date (2024)

The technical Safety Analysis and Project and Strategy Selection components of the Safety Action Plan were completed in December 2024, funded by the MIC’s regular work program and budget.

  • Based on analysis of 2017-2021 collision data and input from MIC-area engineers and planners, the resulting Safety Action Plan Phase 1 Project Summary provides a regional safety analysis for all modes of travel, a prioritized list of high-risk locations and evidence-based mitigation strategies.
SS4A Planning Grant Work (2025-2026)

The MIC received funding from the 2023 federal Safe Streets and Roads for All (SS4A) Grant Program and from the MnDOT IIJA Discretionary Match Program to complete the comprehensive MIC Area Safety Action Plan.

  • This planning work will be undertaken in CY2025-2026, will be consultant-led, and will build upon and incorporate the MIC’s Phase 1 work.
  • The Scope of Work for the consultant Request for Proposal (RFP) is currently under review, but the primary deliverable will be the final MIC Area Safety Action Plan (SAP), and tasks will be focused on conducting a planning process that conforms to the requirements in the SS4A Self-Certification Eligibility Worksheet.
  • Use contact info, at right, to let us know if you wish to be notified when the RFP is posted.
Foundations of the MIC’s Comprehensive Safety Action Plan

The MIC’s work to develop a Safety Action Plan for the greater Duluth-Superior area is based on and will support:

What is a Safety Action Plan?
A comprehensive Safety Action Plan is a holistic, data-driven strategy to improve safety for all roadway users and to prevent crashes that result in serious-injuries and fatalities. It can help to:
• Promote a community-wide safety culture and encourage inter-jurisdictional collaboration;
• Refocus transportation system design and operation on anticipating human mistakes and lessening impact forces to reduce crash severity and save lives;
• Prioritize safety improvements, justify investment decisions, and support transportation improvement grant applications by local jurisdictions.

What will the MIC’s Safety Action Plan Include?
Based on data analysis and stakeholder input, the final Plan will identify top safety issues and high-risk locations in the MIC Area and produce a prioritized list of safety improvement projects.
• Identification of top safety issues and improvement projects will consider all modes of transportation
• The action plan will address not only discrete, location-specific safety issues, but also systemic safety needs and/or policies
• The action plan will guide transportation investment decisions based on safety considerations, and support safety project grant applications by local jurisdictions
• The planning process will aim to engage community leaders and foster a community-wide safety culture

What is the Safe Streets for All (SS4A) Grant Program?
The SS4A grant program is guided by the Safe System Approach, which involves a paradigm shift to improve safety culture, increase collaboration across all safety stakeholders, and refocus transportation system design and operation on anticipating human mistakes and lessening impact forces to reduce crash severity and save lives.
S4A Safety Action Plan Components include:
• Leadership Commitment and Goal Setting
• Planning Structure
• Safety Analysis
• Engagement and Collaboration
• Equity Considerations
• Policy and Process Changes
• Strategy and Project Selection
• Progress and Transparency

What is the Safe System Approach?
The Safe System Approach is a holistic and comprehensive approach that provides a framework to address roadway safety. It works by building and reinforcing multiple layers of protection to both prevent crashes from happening in the first place and to minimize the harm caused to those involved when crashes do occur. It is a holistic and comprehensive approach that provides a guiding framework to make places safer for people.

This is a shift from a conventional safety approach because it focuses on both human mistakes AND human vulnerability and designs a system with many redundancies in place to protect everyone.

 

MIC Area SAP Phase 1 Summary Report (Dec. 2024)

MIC-Safety-Action-Plan_Phase-1_Summary_with_Appendices.pdf