TZD Overview (CC)

Toward Zero Deaths began with people from diverse state agencies who all saw the same
problem: too many people in Minnesota were dying, and being seriously injured, on our
roads. Not only were the 600 deaths a year unacceptable, they were increasing every year.
TZD needed to reverse the trend.
Beginning in 2003, representatives from the Department's of Transportation and Public
Safety and the University of Minnesota decided to try a new approach. It began with cooperation
and evolved into a program for fundamentally changing the safety culture in Minnesota.
The cornerstone strategy — the Four E’s: Education, Enforcement, Engineering and Emergency
Services.
Education and Enforcement work hand in hand. First, the goal is to get safety messages
into classrooms, council meetings, the drivers’ education classes…really any civic organization
that invites TZD in. When aggressive public awareness campaigns are coupled with high-visibility,
targeted enforcement, that’s when real behavioral changes begin to appear.
Engineering prevents and minimizes crashes through systematic low cost fixes, particularly
for crashes that happen at intersections or when vehicles unintentionally leave their
lanes. Strategies include edge-line and center-line rumble stripes, wider pavement markings, improved
lighting at interchanges and intersections, cable median barriers, curve delineation and
better signage on all roads. These make a real difference in the frequency and severity
of crashes.
The recent establishment of a statewide trauma system has streamlined trauma response and
opened up a whole new avenue for collaboration. This system insures victims get to the right
hospital and treatment in the quickest possible time. That saves lives.
What none of these agencies could do separately, they all accomplished together. Not only did
they reverse the trend of increased traffic fatalities, they have reduced fatalities to
a 40-year low.
With more than 600 deaths when TZD began, the program is now aiming for fewer than 400
deaths in 2010 and a final goal of zero traffic fatalities.
Mn/DOT and the agencies that make up Toward Zero Deaths want to thank all our partners
for making the state safer.