Brief Summary of Bill

Combines the Pedestrian Safety Advisory Council and the Cooper Jones Bicyclist Safety Advisory Council into the Cooper Jones Active Transportation Safety Council.
Directs the Council to review and analyze data on programs related to fatalities and serious injuries involving pedestrians, bicyclists, and other nonmotorists and issue an annual report on the Council's findings and recommendations to the Governor and the transportation committees of the Legislature.

Background: A 2015 law directed the Washington Traffic Safety Commission (WTSC) to convene a Pedestrian Safety Advisory Council (Pedestrian Council) to review and analyze data related to pedestrian fatalities and serious injuries to identify points at which the transportation system could be improved and to identify patterns in pedestrian fatalities and serious injuries. The Pedestrian Council was required to meet at least quarterly and to provide a report and make recommendations on measures that could improve pedestrian safety by December 31st of each year. The Pedestrian Council expired June 30, 2019.

In 2017 the legislature created the Cooper Jones Bicyclist Safety Advisory Council, convened by WTSC, to review and analyze data related to bicycle fatalities and serious injuries, and to identify opportunities for safety improvements. The final report to the transportation committees of the Legislature on the strategies deployed to improve bicyclist safety, as well as any improvements the Legislature can make to the Council, was due by December 1, 2018. The Cooper Jones Bicyclist Safety Advisory Council expired on June 30, 2019.

WTSC recommended both the Pedestrian Council and the Cooper Jones Bicycle Safety Advisory Council be consolidated and authorized to continue their original work plan, expanding their purpose of monitoring implementation of past recommendations, and include the examination of the safety of other nonmotorized active transportation participants.

Procedural History. The Legislature passed SSB 5710 in 2019, which implemented the recommendation of the WTSC to combine the two councils and continue their work, however, the statute expired before the amendments to the statute striking the expiration date of June 30, 2019 could take effect.

Summary of Bill: The Pedestrian Safety Advisory Council and the Cooper Jones Bicyclist Safety Advisory Council are combined into the Cooper Jones Active Transportation Safety Council (Council). The WTSC is to convene the Council comprised of stakeholders who have a unique interest or expertise in the safety of pedestrians, bicyclists, and other nonmotorists.

The Council's purpose is to:

review and analyze data and programs related to fatalities and serious injuries involving pedestrians, bicyclists, and other nonmotorists;
identify points at which the transportation system can be improved, including when possible, privately owned areas of the system such as parking lots; and
identify patterns in pedestrian, bicyclist, and other nonmotorist fatalities and serious injuries.

The Council may monitor progress on implementation of existing recommendations, and seek opportunities to expand consideration and implementation of the principles of systematic safety, including areas where data collection can be improved.

The membership of the Council includes:

a representative from the WTSC;
a coroner from the county in which pedestrian, bicyclist, or nonmotorist deaths have occurred;
a representative from the Department of Transportation and from the Department of Health;
a representative from the Association of Cities;
a representative from the Washington State Association of Counties;
a traffic engineer;
a representative from a pedestrian advocacy group;
representatives from law enforcement who have investigated pedestrian, bicyclist, or nonmotorist fatalities; and
a representative from a bicyclist or other nonmotorist advocacy group.

If funds are appropriated to the Council, it may provide grants targeted at improving pedestrian, bicyclist, or nonmotorist safety in accordance with their recommendations.

Staff Summary of Public Testimony: PRO: The emergency clause should not have been vetoed. The Council was able to carry on with some of its work during the interim, so why do you need the bill you ask? There are important protections in the bill for the review of sensitive records of someone who has been killed in a crash and the Council should have those in place in order to continue with its work in full. It is really important that the Council can look deep into the file. It really is critical in determining all of the factors that may have played a role in the crash.