A nationwide review of pedestrian and bicyclist safety education in driver education (NHTSA)

The mission of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) is to save lives, prevent injuries, and reduce economic costs due to road traffic crashes, through education, research, safety standards and enforcement. One way NHTSA furthers this mission is by providing guidance and assistance to the state and local officials who develop, implement and evaluate road safety programs, including driver education courses and training. In recent years, changes to the transportation landscape — including the increased popularity of walking, bicycling and other active forms of transportation — have created a need to reevaluate existing driver education curricula and content (McLeod, 2017; U.S. Census Bureau, 2016; McKenzie, 2016). 

Pedestrians and bicyclists killed in traffic crashes totaled more than 8,000 deaths in 2022. Andwhen compared to passenger vehicle occupants (decrease of 6.8% from 2021 to 2022), pedestrian (increase of 0.7% from 2021 to 2022) and bicyclist (increase of 13% from 2021 to 2022) fatalities continue to increase (NHTSA, 2024). Much of the existing safety guidance aimed at reducing pedestrian- and cyclist-involved crashes references factors within these vulnerable road users’ control (e.g., increasing one’s visibility, use of crosswalks, safe use of electronic devices) (CDC, 2024). However, when involved in fatal single-vehicle crashes, pedestrians and bicyclists are substantially more likely to be struck by the front of the vehicle than by the vehicle’s side or rear, indicating that pedestrians and bicyclists cannot prevent the collision in many of the crashes resulting in fatalities among pedestrians and bicyclists (NCSA, 2023, 2024). 

Although educating drivers on safe practices for sharing the road with bicyclists and pedestrians appears to be critical for helping to ensure the safety of these road users, pedestrian and bicyclist safety information provided in driver safety training curricula varies widely. Some courses include a wealth of information and learning activities that support the desired pedestrian and bicyclist safety learning outcomes, whereas the coverage of these topics by other courses is minimal. 

As a first step to helping to address these gaps in driver education, a review of a variety of driver education and training material was conducted, with an emphasis on trainings that are widely used in the United States. The goal of this review was to determine the level of emphasis on pedestrians, bicyclists, and other micro-mobility road users in the trainings, as well as the specific content covered. This information may be useful for informing:

• the creation of educational and training material to address identified gaps;
• the assessment of existing trainings and educational material; and
• the development of traffic safety policies aimed at reducing the risk posed to vulnerable road users by vehicle drivers.

The target audiences for this report are traffic safety researchers and practitioners, department of motor vehicles officials, employees of departments of education, traffic safety school curriculum/instructional designers, and community leaders and policymakers.

Learn more and view the full report here.