Vision Zero is, at its core, about equity. It is about setting and achieving the morally imperative goal of ensuring that everyone can move about their communities safely.
Centering equity in Vision Zero
At its core, Vision Zero recognizes that all people have the right to move about their communities safely. All people. At its core, Vision Zero is about ensuring equity on our streets, sidewalks, and bikeways. We share this case study and call on city and community leaders to center equity in their Vision Zero work. […]
The central role of public health in Vision Zero
If 30,000 people were killed each year in the United States by a curable illness, we would call it a public health crisis. We would deploy resources, vaccines and interventions to address the spread and bring the death toll to the only acceptable level: zero. Yet, every year 30,000+ people are killed in preventable traffic collisions in this country. Vision Zero asks us to see those traffic deaths like polio or cholera: epidemics that, with an urgent health framing and public response, can be eradicated. In this case study we explore how San Francisco, New York City and Chicago are using the tools of public health — including epidemiology, research and a focus on the root causes of health inequities — to advance their Vision Zero efforts.