JMM develops and delivers Designing Safer Highways for Vulnerable Road Users (VRU) in San Juan, Puerto Rico.Working for the Traffic Safety Commission (Comisión de Seguridad en el Tránsito), of the Puerto Rico Department of Transportation, JMM presented this seminar to over 30 participants and highway designers from the TSC and Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), May 23-25, 2012. The seminar defined the various characteristics of VRUs, provided tools to diagnose the causes of their crashes and potential countermeasures to reduce them. The seminar incorporated requirements of the American with Disabilities (ADA) requirements, based on the Public Right-of-Way Accessibility Guidelines (PROWAG), such as proper sidewalk design, ramp design and other design features that impact the safety of the most vulnerable (pedestrians, bicyclists, motorcyclists, transit users and others). A highlight of the seminar was a field inspection, including issues associated with wheelchair users, of various intersections in the San Juan and Rio Piedras areas utilizing the Tren Urbano rail system. Afterwards, participants made presentations of their observations and presented a series of recommendations. Please visit JMM’s Facebook page for photos. A special thanks to Gloria Reyes and Mario Maldonado for their efforts making this seminar possible.
