Vision Zero
Vision Zero is a strategy to eliminate all traffic fatalities and severe injuries, while increasing safe, healthy, equitable mobility for all. The University of Illinois is an active partner of the Champaign-Urbana Urbanized Area Transportation Study (CUUATS), the transportation entity of the Regional Planning Commission. It is the Metropolitan Planning Organization responsible for administering the federally mandated transportation planning process for the Champaign-Urbana-Savoy-Bondville-Tolono urbanized area. The TDM department’s efforts and safety measures have resulted in zero transportation-related fatalities on campus streets in the last five years.
Dr. Ray Benekohal is a Professor in the Civil & Environmental Engineering department, and he has been involved in traffic studies at the University of Illinois. Most recently in spring 2020, he collaborated with the Transportation Demand Management (TDM) department at Facilities & Services (F&S) for a Vision Zero study on-campus. He is also a faculty representative at the Campus Transportation Advisory Committee (CTAC) that advises the TDM department on transportation-related projects on-campus. Following the results from this study, Dr. Benekohal created a Vision Zero focus group in fall 2020.
The City of Urbana's Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Commission (BPAC) passed a resolution in support of Vision Zero to be presented to the Urbana City Council in fall 2020. The TDM department represents the university at these BPAC meetings. In October 2020, the City of Urbana City Council approved the Vision Zero resolution.