Recent Streetsblog USA posts about AASHTO

The American Highway Safety Establishment Warms Up Some Leftovers

By Angie Schmitt | Mar 20, 2015 | 23 Comments

A group of heavy hitters in the road building and traffic safety establishment recently came out with a plan called “Toward Zero Deaths” [PDF], presented as an ambitious strategy to cut traffic fatalities in America. But don’t get too excited by the branding — the ideas inside don’t present much of a challenge to practices that have made the U.S. […]

AASHTO Chief: Don’t Blame Street Design for Cyclist Deaths

By Angie Schmitt | Mar 18, 2015 | 46 Comments

This is a pretty revealing (read: depressing) exchange between a U.S. representative and the president of the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials, which represents state DOTs. The transportation agencies that comprise AASHTO essentially dictate how streets are designed throughout the U.S. They are aware that pedestrian and cyclist deaths are not declining as fast as total traffic fatalities. […]

Engineering Establishment Sets Out to Purge Deviant Bikeway Designs

By Angie Schmitt | Mar 11, 2015 | 1,145 Comments

The National Committee on Uniform Traffic Control Devices might be the most influential group of American bike policy makers you’ve never heard of. The committee shapes street design standards in the United States to a large extent. Their recommendations become part of the Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices, a guide to street markings, signs, and […]

What AASHTO’s “Top Projects” Tell Us About State DOT Leadership

By Angie Schmitt | Sep 19, 2014 | 11 Comments

Who can build the biggest road slab the fastest? Those seem to be the major criteria used by the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials to determine the “best” projects by state DOTs across the country. In another sign that most state Departments of Transportation should still be called “highway departments,” there are […]

State DOTs Brazenly Request a Blank Check to Build More Highways

By Tanya Snyder | Oct 30, 2013 | 38 Comments

“This is a money and power grab.” “It’s very disappointing and very AASHTO.” That’s how some transportation reformers are describing the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials’ new recommendations for the next surface transportation bill. The current bill, MAP-21, expires in less than a year. AASHTO’s proposal is “so mired in protective technical-speak that […]

FHWA Endorses Engineering Guide for Walkable Urban Streets

By Angie Schmitt | Sep 13, 2013 | No Comments

Urban streets serve a much different purpose than rural ones: They’re for walking, socializing, and local commerce, not just moving vehicles. Unfortunately, American engineering guides tend not to capture these nuances. That can lead to a lot of problems for cities. Wide roads appropriate for rural areas are dangerous and bad for local businesses in […]

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