Kathy Sokolic shares powerfully about her nephew Ben who was seriously injured in a crash and suffered for five years before he succumbed to his injuries. Too many people die from their injuries after more than 30 days and not even counted in the numbers of people killed in crashes. The National Safety Council counts everyone who dies within one year which if they can do it, so should NHTSA. Read more in Streetsblog USA.

Dozens of FSS members held photos and shared their stories to press for congestion pricing at a rally with 800+ New Yorkers urging Governor Hochul to implement congestion pricing.

FSS members Laura Fredricks, Jay Hightman, Lindsay Caron, and Grandma Beverly Shelton powerfully share their stories on Bike Talk (second half of the episode) and talk about how they are fighting for change in Philadelphia, Richmond, Seattle, and L.A.

The New York State Legislature just passed a bill reauthorizing and expanding NYC’s red light camera program. The pilot red light camera program caught 700,000 drivers running red lights and putting New Yorkers lives at risk will now be allowed to quadruple in size. Thank you to all the families who traveled to Albany, testified in hearings, and shared their story to make this possible.

FSS members Patty Avery from Indiana, Delilah Smalley and Bill DeMott from Floria, and Beatriz Montano from Fresno shared their stories to support Smart Growth America’s latest Dangerous by Design report and the need to fix our roadways. Check out press coverage from Streetsblog USA as well as local coverage from Pittsburgh to Fresno and watch Patty Avery on the DxD webinar.

Washington DC may soon be requiring speed limiters for repeat speeding offenders thanks to the efforts of the DC chapter. Jessica Williams gave powerful testimony at the DC Council Hearing and Dana Williams wrote a powerful OpEd. You can read more here.

California FSS chapters are helping lead the flight for safe new vehicles. The Senate just passed our first-in-the-nation legislation (SB 961) to require new vehicles to be equipped with passive speed governors — alerting drivers when they exceed 10 MPH over the speed limit. Studies show that this technology gets people to slow down. It saves lives. Thank you to Jenny Yu for speaking so powerfully in favor of this bill. Read more here and here.

FSS Philadelphia Area chapter co-chair Latanya Byrd led the fight to secure and expand the speed camera program in Philadelphia. The data is now in and it’s proven to save lives.

Dozens of FSS members were among 160+ advocates from across the country participating in Capitol Hill Roadway Safety Advocacy Days in Washington, D.C. - an unprecedented gathering of those who have lost loved ones or themselves suffered an injury crash. Advocates shared stories with lawmakers, focusing on life-saving solutions including Complete Streets, Intelligent Speed Assistance (ISA), Impaired Driving Technology, and Post-Crash care. FSS joined the Road to Zero Coalition’s Annual Meeting including a fireside chat with NSC Director Lorraine Martin and Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, who later shared a tweet celebrating the passage of Sammy’s Law in New York and emphasizing that there is much more work yet to be done to address this national epidemic of deaths and serious injuries on our roadways. The event was organized by FSS in conjunction with the National Safety Council, StopDistractions.org, and It Could Be Me. Check out some new coverage from the pres conference here.

Governor Wes Moore stood with FSS member Dan Langenkamp as he signed the Sarah Debbink Langenkamp Memorial Act into law. The bill is named after Dan’s wife, Sarah, who was killed in August of 2022 while riding her bike along River Road in Bethesda after returning from the Ukraine, because it was too dangerous, where she was a high level diplomat. The driver of a flatbed truck hit her while turning right into a parking lot, as she was in a bike lane. The bill increases penalties for drivers who hit cyclists on the shoulder or in bike lanes. Under the bill just signed by the governor, a driver who strikes a cyclist in a bike lane could face up to $2,000 in fines and two months in jail. Read Dan’s OpEd and coverage in Maryland Matters.

On May 31st, FSS San Diego members fight for the 15 most dangerous intersections to be fixed in San Diego. Fixing these intersections will save lives and other families from our heartache. Check out press coverage on NBC, CBS, and Fox 5. The City appears poised to #FixFatal15 with the latest budget vote with $800,000 allocated in the current budget.

After four legislative sessions of fighting, Sammy’s Law finally passed the legislature and was signed into law. This also would never have been possible without the hundreds of FSS members who poured out their hearts at vigils, rallies, trips to Albany and more as well as the 130 organizations who signed on in support – including AARP, the UFT, Local 372 the crossing guards union, the Chinese Planning Council, the Hip Hop Youth Summit Council, Consumer Reports, the Greater New York Hospital Association, and a hundred more. See Amy’s Cohen’s video on X and the full bill signing ceremony.

As part of this year’s NYS Safe Streets Coalition lobby day, Families for Safe Streets organized a demonstration of intelligent speed assistance to press for passage of the Speed Limiters for Reckless Drivers bill. See Senator Gounardes’ video of his test drive in the Streetsblog article.

FSS member Teri Vogel joined a panel of fellow advocates at this year’s Lifesavers Conference, April 7-9, in Denver, to share how she honors her husband’s memory through advocacy. Teri’s husband’s Chuck was out for an early morning bike ride in July, 2019 when he was killed by a hit-and-run driver. Her voice was powerful on this important panel moderated by FSS Support Services Manager Aly Geller entitled: Victim & Survivor Advocates: A Critical Voice to Advance the Safe System Approach.

FSS members across the country giving a face to the crisis. FSS DC member Jessica Reiser Hart was featured in a powerful and heart-wrenching CBS national news story and speaks about her 5-year-old daughter Allie who was killed near their home. Amy Cohen also was on NBC’s Halle Jackson NOW new show.

Hundreds of local family members in Corona Park joined Queens elected officials and Families for Safe Streets to say enough is enough when it comes to traffic violence as they mourn the recent deaths of two children on Queens streets. Participants rallied and marched for street safety measures, loudly demanding passage of Sammy’s Law in the state budget and other safety measures as Queens reels from several recent deaths, including 8-year-old Bayron Palomino Arroyo, who was killed by a driver while crossing the street with his mother and brother two weeks ago. Seventeen people have been killed in traffic crashes in Queens so far this year. Check out this video of the event, and the Queens Daily Eagle story.

Listen to FSS founder Amy Cohen in conversation with Uplifters Podcast host Aransas Savas about turning the tragic loss of her son Sammy into the growing national movement that is FSS. The podcast explores the tools and strategies that enable us to bolster ourselves and sustain our work.

FSS submitted comments and encouraged its members to submit comments in support of the Honoring Abbas Family Legacy to Terminate Drunk Driving Act or HALT Drunk Driving Act — urging rapid implementation of the mandate for advanced impaired driving prevention technology. Impaired driving is a persistent traffic safety issue that has contributed to nearly one-third of all traffic deaths annually over the past decade. Given the unacceptably high cost to society of these preventable deaths, passive detection technology—a solution that is available, effective, and gravely needed—should be required technology for all new vehicles. This technology has the capacity to address those impaired or distracted in many ways, whether it be from alcohol, prescription drugs, illicit substances, drowsiness, cell phone use, or the large consoles now prominent in most new vehicles. Read our comments here.

FSS member Kate Brockwehl and others are helping lead the fight for the renewal and expansion of New York City’s red light camera program — with a goal to expand the program from 1% to 10% of intersections. Check out all the news coverage. “Three decades of data makes it clear: red light cameras reduce crashes and change driver behavior-but state law unfortunately limits their safety benefits to a tiny fraction of intersections.” Check out this interview with Kate and learn more about the effectiveness of this program.

Philadelphia FSS chapter co-founder Latanya Byrd joined senior Biden-Harris administration members on a White House panel discussing how the Administration’s equity agenda has impacted infrastructure projects around the country. Latanya made a compelling case for continued focus on equity, sharing the tragic loss of four family members killed on a notorious high-injury corridor in Philadelphia. Fellow panelists included: Deb Haaland, Secretary of the Interior, Miguel Cardona, Secretary of Education, and Marcia Fudge, Secretary of Housing & Urban Development. Washington DC chapter member Dan Langenkamp also spoke at a DC event marking the second anniversary of USDOT's National Roadway Safety Strategy (NRSS), sharing the tragic loss of his wife, Sarah Debbink Langenkamp who was struck by a flatbed truck driver making a ‘right hook’ turn into a parking lot. Sarah was a US diplomat, and mother to the couple’s two young sons. The USDOT announced its 2024 National Roadway Safety Strategy Progress Report, including 41 new commitments from businesses and organizations to support the NRSS and take action to reverse America’s roadway crisis.