The Nation

HARTFORD, Conn. — President Joe Biden said this week that although he expects his social safety net and climate spending package, which is supposed to include the trillion-dollar infrastructure bill, to shrink, “we’re going to come back and get the rest” after it’s passed. “We’re not going to get $3.5 trillion. We’ll get less than that, but we’re gonna get it. And we’re going to come back and get the rest,” he said during remarks at a child care center in Connecticut. Democrats on Capitol Hill are working to reduce the sweeping package down to about $2 trillion in spending, which would be paid for with higher taxes on corporations and the wealthy. The proposal includes everything from free child care and community college to dental, vision and hearing aid benefits for seniors and a number of significant provisions meant to combat climate change, all key items for progressives, but moderates have balked at the original $3.5 trillion price tag. With slim margins in the House and an evenly-divided Senate, Democrats have no votes to spare on the bill. The whittling process has sparked concern from some progressives that their priorities could be left out of the bill. But Biden has openly acknowledged the price tag will have to come down. On Friday, he visited a child development center in Hartford to speak about the need for investments in child care and other social safety net programs, arguing they’re imperative to keep America competitive in the global economy. At the center, Biden promoted his proposal to make such care free for lower-income families, and ensure that families making up to 150% of their state’s median income pay less than 7% of their salaries on child care. It’s part of a massive expansion of the social safety net that Biden has championed and is aiming to pass with just Democratic votes in Congress. “Too many folks in Washington still don’t realize it isn’t enough just to invest in our physical infrastructure. We also have to invest in our people,” he said. Biden went on to outline how his plan would reduce child care costs for Connecticut residents, and noted the disparity between U.S. spending on early child care versus greater investments in other countries, to argue that the lack of investment is causing the U.S. to fall behind. “How can we compete in the world if millions of American parents, especially moms, can’t be part of the workforce because they can’t afford the cost of child care or eldercare?” He briefly greeted some of the children at the center’s playground before speaking, at one point kneeling down to give a child a hug. The president’s sales pitch comes as his Democratic allies have raised alarm that the American public does not understand the benefits of the package. There is renewed urgency among Democrats to push through the package ahead of an end-of-month deadline on transportation funding, Biden’s upcoming foreign trip, and a closer-than-anticipated race for Virginia’s next governor. Talks between the White House and members of Congress continue, as they try to reach consensus both on the total spending level for the legislation and what particular programs should be included. Objections by centrist Sens. Joe Manchin and Kyrsten Sinema are forcing Democrats to shrink the package from Biden’s proposed $3.5 trillion to closer to $2 trillion. The fate of that legislation, branded “Build Back Better” by Biden, is also holding up a more than $1 trillion bipartisan infrastructure bill that passed the Senate this summer. House progressives are balking at supporting that bill until agreement is reached on a path forward on the social safety net package. In an interview this week with The Associated Press, Terry McAuliffe, the Democratic candidate for Virginia governor, criticized Democrats and Biden over the stalled infrastructure package. “They all got to get their act together and vote,” McAuliffe said. Asked specifically if he was calling out Biden, McAuliffe said, “I put everybody there.” McAuliffe is in a tight race with Republican newcomer Glenn Youngkin in a state Biden carried by 10 points just last fall.  

CASEY, Ill. — An Illinois highway worker is being hailed as a hero after saving a truck driver who rolled her rig. Illinois District 7 Highway Maintainer Alan Ingle was hauling rock on Interstate 70 near Casey, Illinois, when he saw an 18-wheeler flip into the ditch directly in front of him, according to an Illinois Highway Department news release. The release didn’t say when the crash happened. After seeing the wreck, Ingle reacted immediately, pulling to the middle of the road and turning on his hazard lights to warn motorists approaching the scene. He then made his way to the rig to check on the driver, who was “conscious but confused,” the news release stated. As the rig began leaking fuel, Ingle reassured the driver that everything would be OK, helping her and her dogs get out of the cab safely. The driver walked away with only minor scrapes and bruises, the news release noted. “It was very apparent that the truck tractor was leaking diesel fuel from the tanks all over the underside of parts of the engine,” Illinois State Trooper Ryan Mayhaus said. “The truck tractor could have easily caught fire with the driver still inside. Mr. Ingle was able to help the driver before fire, EMS or any troopers could get to the scene. It is my opinion that Mr. Ingle helped save a life.” Ingle isn’t a stranger to being in the right place at the right time. Earlier this year, he and a coworker came upon an overturned camper that was on fire. Equipped with military experience and training as a volunteer with the Toledo Fire Department, he was able to act quickly to extinguish the fire. Ingle said that he does not view the rescue as heroic. “It’s part of our job to ensure the safety of the traveling public,” Ingle said. And that is exactly what he did. “I am grateful for Ingle’s quick thinking and that we have many such employees across the state who spring into action to assist those in need,” Region 4 Engineer Jeff Myers said.

HUNTINGTON, W.V.— An 18-wheeler that’s part of country music star Jason Aldean’s equipment fleet crashed Thursday morning on Interstate 64 in West Virginia. Cabell County, West Virginia, dispatchers reported that the crash happened around 4:20 a.m. local time near mile marker six on I-64 in Huntington, West Virginia, according to the publication Country Now, which covers the country music industry. While no injuries were reported, the equipment truck sustained front end damage. It wasn’t immediately clear whether or not other vehicles were involved in the crash.

COLUMBUS, Ohio – The Ohio State Highway Patrol (OSHP) joined forces with other members of the 6-State Trooper Project to focus on speed, safety belt and driving under the influence enforcement on Oct. 8-10 along Interstate 70. During the project, 323 people in Ohio were issued citations, including 297 for speed and 21 for seat belt violations. Additionally, five people were cited for driving under the influence. “The high-visibility enforcement included the Indiana State Police, Pennsylvania State Police and OSHP,” according to an OSHP news release Since 2020, there have been more than 4,700 crashes on I-70 in Ohio, including 27 fatal crashes, the news release stated. Of the 27 fatal crashes, 56 percent involved alcohol and/or drugs and 26 percent were speed related. Troopers have arrested nearly 1,000 motorists impaired by alcohol and/or drugs on I-70 since 2020. The 6-State Trooper Project is a multi-state law enforcement partnership aimed at providing combined and coordinated law enforcement and security services in the areas of highway safety, criminal patrol and intelligence sharing.

WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden tried to reassure Americans on Wednesday that he can tame high inflation, announcing a deal to expand operations at the Port of Los Angeles as prices keep climbing and container ships wait to dock in a traffic jam threatening the U.S. economy and holiday shopping. Prices are jumping in large part because container ships are stranded at ports and because unloaded goods are waiting for trucks, leading to mass shortages and delays that have caused a longer than expected bout of inflation. The rising costs are eating into worker pay, creating a drag on growth and driving Republican criticism of Biden just as his multitrillion-dollar tax, economic, climate and infrastructure agenda is going through the crucible of congressional negotiations. The White House responded to the backlog by finalizing an agreement for the Port of Los Angeles to become a 24-hour, seven-days-a-week operation. The hope is that nighttime operations will help to break the logjam and reduce shipping delays for toasters, sneakers, bicycles, cars and more. “With holidays coming up, you might be wondering if the gifts you plan to buy will arrive on time,” Biden said at the White House. “Today we have some good news: We’re going to help speed up the delivery of goods all across America.” But the expansion of port operations was also an unspoken recognition that inflation is lingering at higher levels long after the economy began to reopen from the coronavirus pandemic. Businesses were worrying about monthslong delays for shipping containers in June, yet the administration only formed its supply chain task force that month and named a port envoy on Aug. 27 to address the challenge. Ports are also just one piece of the puzzle, Biden said. The country needs more truck drivers, private retailers to step up and better infrastructure, as well as a supply chain that can less easily be disrupted by pandemics and extreme weather. The president is trying to use the predicament as a selling point for his policy plans that undergoing congressional scrutiny. “We need to take a longer view and invest in building greater resiliency to withstand the kinds of shocks we’ve seen over and over, year in and year out, the risk of pandemic, extreme weather, climate change, cyberattacks, weather disruptions,” he said. The sense of uncertainty is beginning to consume the attention of many Americans. University of Michigan economist Betsey Stevenson noted on Twitter the “economy is in a very fragile and unprecedented place.” Prices are rising at more than 5%, trade in goods and services have slowed and more Americans are quitting their jobs while the delta variant has made the coronavirus pandemic a risk. “No one really knows what’s going to happen,” wrote Stevenson, a former member of the White House Council of Economic Advisers under President Barack Obama. Ports in Los Angeles and Long Beach, California, account for 40% of all shipping containers entering the United States. As of Tuesday, there were 64 ships berthed at the two ports and 80 waiting to dock and unload, according to the Marine Exchange of Southern California. Commitments by the Los Angeles port’s operator, longshoremen and several of the country’s largest retail and shipping companies are expected to help relieve the backlog. Walmart, FedEx, UPS, Target, Samsung and The Home Depot committed to unloading during off-peak hours, making it easier for the Los Angeles port to operate nonstop. The Long Beach port has been operating 24 hours daily for seven days for roughly the past three weeks. Biden also held a virtual roundtable with the heads of Walmart, FedEx Logistics, UPS, Target, Samsung Electronics North America, the Teamsters Union and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, among other groups, before his speech. Republican lawmakers say Biden’s $1.9 trillion coronavirus relief package has fueled higher prices. A recent analysis issued by the investment bank Goldman Sachs estimates that “supply-constrained goods” account for 80% of this year’s inflation overshoot, yet the political criticism continues to sting as housing and oil prices add to inflationary pressures. Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky has made inflation one of his central charges against Biden, a sign that getting prices under control could be essential for Democrats trying to hold onto congressional seats in next year’s elections. “The Democrats’ inflation is so bad that even though the average American worker has gotten a multiple-percentage-point pay raise over the last year, their actual purchasing power has been cut,” McConnell said in a Senate speech last week. “Even dollar stores are having to raise their prices. Just ask any American family about their last few trips to the supermarket, the gas station or the toy store. Heaven forbid if they’ve had to participate in the housing market or the auto market anytime lately.” The Biden administration has argued that higher inflation is temporary. Yet the supply chain issues have persisted months after the economy began to reopen and recover as vaccines lessened many of the risks from the pandemic. Consumer prices climbed 5.4% from a year ago, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported Wednesday. That is significantly above the Federal Reserve’s 2% target. Higher energy, food and shelter costs were prime drivers of price increases in September.

SOLVANG, Calif. — A major highway in Southern California coastal mountains remained closed Wednesday and evacuation orders were in place as a growing wildfire chewed through dry vegetation in the region. More than 760 firefighters battled the Alisal Fire, which covered 21 square miles (54 square kilometers) along the south Santa Barbara County coast and was only 5% contained, county fire officials said. The fire was burning near Rancho del Cielo, which was once owned by Ronald and Nancy Reagan and was known as the Western White House during his presidency. Fire crews were protecting the ranch where Reagan hosted world leaders. The fire erupted Monday on a ridge and swept toward the ocean, forcing the closure of U.S. 101, the only major highway on that section of the coast. Evacuation orders and warnings were in place for ranches and several rural communities. While the area is lightly populated, the blaze burning in dense chaparral threatened more than 100 homes, ranches and other buildings, fire officials said. The Santa Barbara County Board of Supervisors declared a local emergency on Tuesday and asked Gov. Gavin Newsom to declare a state of emergency to free up more state resources for firefighters and evacuees. In Northern California, fire crews increased containment of a blaze that destroyed 25 mobile homes, 16 RVs and a park building at the Rancho Marina RV Park in Sacramento County. No injuries were reported, and the cause remained under investigation. To the south in San Joaquin County, a man suffered severe third-degree burns over most of his body and about five mobile homes were damaged by flames that raced through the Islander Mobile Home Park, Lathrop-Manteca Fire Chief Josh Capper told Fox40-TV. Powerful gusts swept across the state Monday, toppling trees and whipping up blinding dust clouds. The Pacific Gas & Electric utility shut off power Monday to about 24,000 customers in targeted areas of 23 counties to prevent fires from being started if gusts damaged electrical equipment. The windy weather then settled down somewhat and power was restored Tuesday, but red flag warnings for extreme fire danger will return Thursday and PG&E warned that it may need to cut power to about 29,000 customers across 19 counties on Thursday because of the renewed threat. PG&E equipment was blamed for a 2018 fire that wiped out most of the town of Paradise in Butte County. The company filed for bankruptcy and pleaded guilty to 84 counts of involuntary manslaughter. PG&E also faces criminal charges for fires caused by its fraying equipment, including involuntary manslaughter counts after a blaze near Redding last year killed four. A historic drought in the American West tied to climate change is making wildfires harder to fight. It has killed millions of trees in California alone. Scientists say climate change has made the West much warmer and drier in the past 30 years and will continue to make weather more extreme and wildfires more frequent and destructive. Windy weather is a nightmare for firefighters in a state where heat waves and historic drought have left forests and brush tinder-dry. Fires that began in late summer are still burning after destroying hundreds of homes.

SALT LAKE CITY — With the governor of Texas leading the charge, conservative Republicans in several states are moving to block or undercut President Joe Biden’s COVID-19 vaccine mandates for private employers before the regulations are even issued. The growing battle over what some see as overreach by the federal government is firing up a segment of the Republican Party base, even though many large employers have already decided on their own to require their workers to get the shot. The dustup will almost certainly end up in court since GOP attorneys general in nearly half of the states have vowed to sue once the rule is unveiled. In the trucking industry, many drivers have been outspoken against vaccine mandates, even threatening to hold up goods and services to boycott the shots. The Facebook group Twisted Truckers, which draws thousands of truckers to its page each day, has been one of the most outspoken against mandatory vaccinations. Facebook user Sharon Rogers recently posted on the site: “No, No, No. We do not live in a tyranny, even though (President Joe) Biden is trying to act like a tyrant. It is not legal and totally unconstitutional. It is also probably a smoke screen for something else that is going on. They like to distract us.” User Stephen Shindler said: “Dictator at its finest. Too much control when all 3 branches are Democrats.” The courts have long upheld vaccine mandates, and the Constitution gives the federal government the upper hand over the states, but with the details still unannounced and more conservative judges on the bench, the outcome isn’t entirely clear. On Monday, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott issued an executive order barring private companies or any other entity from requiring vaccines. It was perhaps the most direct challenge yet to Biden’s announcement a month ago that workers at private companies with more than 100 employees would have to get either vaccinated or tested weekly for the coronavirus. “No entity in Texas can compel receipt of a COVID-19 vaccine by any individual … who objects to such vaccination,” Abbott wrote in his order. White House officials brushed off Abbott’s order, saying the question of whether state law could supersede federal was settled 160 years ago during the Civil War. They said they Biden administration will push through the opposition and put into effect the president’s package of mandates, which could affect up to 100 million Americans in all. Noting the nation’s COVID-19 death toll of more than 700,000, White House press secretary Jen Psaki accused the opposition of putting politics ahead of safety. “I think it’s pretty clear when you make a choice that’s against all public health information and data out there, that it’s not based on what is in the interests of the people you are governing. It is perhaps in the interest of your own politics,” she said. Several large companies in Texas have already implemented their own vaccine mandates, and two Texas-based airlines, Southwest and American, indicated Tuesday they would follow the order of the Biden administration, saying federal action supersedes any state mandate or law. Elsewhere, lawmakers in Arkansas have approved a measure creating vaccine-mandate exemptions. Though the GOP governor hasn’t said whether he will sign it, it has prompted fears businesses will be forced to choose whether to break federal or state law. “We are tying the hands of Arkansas businesses that want to make their own decision in how best to keep their people safe,” said Randy Zook, president of the Arkansas Chamber of Commerce. Some of the state’s largest companies, including Walmart and Tyson Foods, have required some or all employees get vaccinated. Calls for special legislative sessions to counter vaccine mandates have been heard in states like Wyoming, Kansas and South Dakota, where Republican Gov. Kristi Noem is so far resisting calls to immediately consider a bill that would guarantee people could opt out. “I hear from people almost daily who are going to lose their jobs, are living in fear,” said Republican state Rep. Scott Odenbach, who has clashed with Noem on the issue. “They shouldn’t have to choose between feeding their family and their own medical freedom.” In Tennessee, a $500 million incentive deal to lure a Ford Motor Co. project could be undermined if GOP Gov. Bill Lee refuses to consider further loosening COVID-19 restrictions, including vaccine requirements, the powerful House speaker told a local radio station. In Indiana, Republican Gov. Eric Holcomb is also resisting a push from within his party to ban workplace vaccine mandates. Bills are being introduced or drafted elsewhere too, including swing states like Ohio and New Hampshire, where the Republican sponsor was elected House speaker after his predecessor died of COVID-19. “We have made it clear that government mandates are not the path to successful vaccination rates and will only cause further division in this country,” Speaker Sherm Packard said last month. In Utah, lawmakers have not taken action, but a record-setting crowd of over 600 people packed a legislative hearing room last week. Rob Moore, CEO of Salt Lake City-based Big-D Construction, said he supports vaccines but has questions about the mandate rollout. He already has a worker shortage on his job sites, and he said employee surveys tell him that nearly 20% of his workers don’t want to get inoculated, so they would need to be tested weekly. “That’s heavy on our mind right now. I don’t know if the federal government has thought through that all that well. The cost is going to be enormous,” he said. In other sectors, vaccine requirements have gone smoothly. In Utah, the NBA’s Jazz is making its employees get vaccinated. It is also requiring fans at games to show proof of vaccination or a negative COVID-19 test. So far, just a few ticket refunds have been needed, and the season opener is expected to be sold out by next week, said Jazz spokesman Frank Zang. “I think there’s understanding of what’s at stake here, in terms of having a safe environment for people to enjoy sports and concerts and shows again,” he said. While the conservative legislative push may not ultimately succeed in blocking the mandates, it could be a stumbling block and could prove to be another factor pushing the GOP further right. Abbott’s order, for example, comes as he faces criticism from candidates on the right on COVID-19 policies. In Arizona, the attorney general has filed an early lawsuit as he runs in a crowded Republican primary for U.S. Senate. Mike Meckler, a conservative activist from Texas who helped found the tea party a decade ago, said the mandate issue is firing up younger people. He summed up the mood among activists as: “If you’re not with us, then you’re with the fascists.” Only about 56% of Americans have been fully vaccinated, far short of the level experts say is needed to keep the virus in check. COVID-19 vaccinations have been given to more than 200 million Americans, and serious side effects have proved extremely rare. Experts say any risk from the vaccine is far lower than the danger posed by COVID-19. Recent polling shows about half of Americans favor requiring workers in large companies to get vaccinated or tested weekly. But people are deeply split based on their political party, with about 6 in 10 Republicans opposing the mandate for employees, according to the survey by The Associated Press and NORC-Center for Public Affairs Research. Even before Biden’s announcement, there were more than 100 bills in state legislatures seeking to limit vaccine mandates over the past year, said Dorit Rubinstein Reiss, a professor at the University of California’s Hastings College of the Law. Most of those failed, but several states did impose some limits, many involving state agencies or schools. Montana is the only state to pass a law banning private employers from requiring vaccines. The measure includes penalties for business owners of a $500 fine or prison. It is is facing two court challenges, from the Montana Medical Association and from a law firm that says the rule interferes with businesses’ decisions about how to provide a safe working environment. As judges weigh some of these cases, much will depend on exactly how the nationwide rule is written. It will come through the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, which has broad power to regulate the workplace. It will be drafted as a temporary emergency rule. “They will have to frame it in a way that makes a case this is workplace-related and not just an attempt to raise vaccination rates in the United States more broadly,” Reiss said. “I expect the main benefit to the mandate will be that it gives cover to companies that already want to do that.” The Trucker Staff contributed to this report.

LAREDO, Texas — A Texas truck driver who pleaded guilty to conspiracy to transport undocumented migrants within the United States has been sentenced to 50 months in federal prison followed by three years of supervised release. Ivan Salazar pleaded guilty on July 27 to conspiracy to transport undocumented migrants within the United States. U.S. District Judge Marina Garcia Marmolejo sentenced him on Oct. 5, According to the U.S. Border Patrol (USBP), on May 29, Salazar drove up in a silver 18-wheeler at the USBP checkpoint on Interstate 35 and was referred to secondary inspection point after a K-9 unit sensed something inside the trailer. But instead of pulling up to the secondary inspection location, Salazar drove away from the scene, according to the USBP. The Laredo Morning Times reported that agents stopped the trailer near mile marker 31 of I-35, where Salazar exited the tractor and unsuccessfully tried to run away. Meanwhile, other agents opened the doors of the trailer and discovered 108 people inside. Border Patrol said all were determined to be in the country illegally. They were citizens of Mexico, Honduras, Guatemala, El Salvador, Ecuador, and the Dominican Republic.

WASHINGTON – U.S. Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg, along with officials from the Roadway Safety Foundation (RSF), presented seven life-saving projects with National Roadway Safety Awards in a virtual ceremony hosted on Oct. 8 from Capitol Hill. According to an RSF news release, the seven winners were selected from a nationwide field of applicants, which are sponsored jointly by the Federal Highway Administration and the RSF. Begun in 1999, the biennial program honors projects and programs that cost-effectively help the nation achieve progress toward eliminating highway fatalities and serious injuries. “Congratulations to today’s seven honorees for the remarkable work they’ve done to protect the traveling public,” Buttigieg said. “They are proof that we have no shortage of willpower or good ideas for improving roadway safety. Preliminary data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration show that 38,680 people died in motor vehicle traffic crashes in 2020 – a 7.2 percent increase from 2019. This increase occurred despite a 13.2 percent decrease in vehicle miles traveled due to the pandemic and is the highest number of fatalities since 2007. “Projects like these save lives by significantly discouraging dangerous driving,” Greg Cohen, executive director of the RSF, said. “Countless future travelers, whose lives and limbs will be spared by these innovations, will owe an unknowing debt of gratitude to today’s honorees. We urge DOTs across the nation to look at Bellevue and other awardees’ innovations and replicate them wherever possible” The awards covered two categories: Infrastructure and operational improvements and program planning, development and evaluation. The Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) won for its use of Work Zone Safety Technologies for Arterial Roads, which are burdened with higher fatality rates than interstates. FDOT studied the use of Active Work Zone Awareness Devices (AWADs), which employ radar in combination with LED signs to warn drivers of upcoming work zones, displays their travel speed and delivers safety messaging. FDOT went a step further by linking the AWADs to drivers using the Waze navigation app. The initiative’s results include vehicle speeds entering arterial work zones dropping by 10.6 percent, safe driving behavior increasing by 39 percent, and risky driving declining by 34 percent. The North Carolina Department of Transportation (NCDOT) won for its Long-Life Pavement Markings Safety Initiative to reduce lane departure crashes in a state where 14,000 fatal and serious-injury lane departure crashes occurred between 2015 and 2019. Designed to help drivers better see markings when driving on curvy roads, in inclement weather or at night, NCDOT tested the long-life markings on more than 400 miles of roadway, recording an overall 13 percent reduction in lane departure crashes. The long-life markings also are designed to provide at least five to seven years of adequate retro-reflectivity and pavement delineation, as compared with approximately two years from standard markings, thereby being more cost efficient in the long term. The Village of Whitefish Bay, Wisconsin, won for its Community-Wide Safety Improvements. Confronting a decade-long increase in crashes involving the most vulnerable road users, the Milwaukee suburb deployed a series of low-cost solutions to reduce risks to pedestrians and cyclists. These included dynamic speed feedback signs, “yield to pedestrian” signage, design changes such as high-visibility crosswalks, installation of median in the center of highways, lengthier pedestrian intervals at signals and better street lighting. A simple but noteworthy improvement is the installation of “Danish Offsets.” Widely deployed in Denmark, crosswalk paths are oriented to provide more direct sight lines for pedestrians to observe oncoming vehicles. Since 2015, community-wide crashes are down 39 percent. The City of Bellevue, Washington, won for its application of a Video Analytics Program, which is utilizing cutting-edge video analytics to identify safety challenges in near-real-time, enabling the city to proactively address those challenges. The smart technologies convert raw video from existing traffic cams into flow, speed and conflict event data. In addition to identifying hot spots, Bellevue’s video analytics program also provides rapid insight on how countermeasures perform. As just one example, Bellevue made traffic signal operations changes at 124th Avenue Northeast and Northeast Eighth Street and observed a 60 percent reduction in critical conflicts at the intersection. The Broward Metropolitan Planning Organization won for its innovative Complete Streets Master Plan, which is measurably improving safety on Wilton Drive in the Fort Lauderdale, Florida, area and promises similar benefits on other local roadways. With the single highest number of pedestrian fatalities in the entire nation (1,675 between 2010 and 2019), Broward worked with localities and other stakeholders to redesign the bustling Wilton Drive, eliminating a vehicular travel lane in each direction in order to install buffered bike lanes, mid-block crossing medians, wider sidewalks, better lighting and other improvements. Witnessing a 66 percent decrease in bicycle and pedestrian crashes and a 75 percent reduction in severe-injury and fatal crashes – alongside a 50 percent improvement in corridor travel times – Broward is moving forward with similar improvements for 20 other projects. The California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) won for its 2020-24 Strategic Highway Safety Plan (SHSP) to reverse a trend of rising fatalities and injuries on state roads. With an average of 10 people dying every day on California roads, Caltrans created a highly targeted approach to safety with its SHSP update. It designates high-priority challenge areas, expands and diversifies membership of the SHSP committee, implements the program with innovative tools, and evaluates progress on a continual basis. The Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) and Texas A&M Transportation Institute (TTI) won for its all-new Safety Scoring Tool. With fatalities on Texas rural non-interstate roads occurring at twice the rate of other Texas roads, TxDOT partnered with the Texas A&M Transportation Institute to develop a user-friendly means of evaluating the safety performance of rural highway design elements. The scoring tool assesses the total effects of changes in lane and shoulder width, horizontal and vertical curve geometry, clearances to objects, and other factors. The tool is now required for all rural two and multi-lane non-access controlled projects, ranging from routine maintenance to complete reconstructions, fostering a proactive, rather than passive or reactive, approach to safety. The honorable mentions are: The Florida Department of Transportation for its Local Technical Assistance Program to improve the skills and increase the knowledge of the transportation workforce on roadway safety via virtual training and technical assistance; the Montana Department of Transportation for its reconstruction of an antiquated segment of U.S. Highway 89 that provides a key entrance to Glacier National Park; and the Town of Portland, Ct. for its formation of a grassroots Complete Streets Group to coordinate with local officials in writing, adopting, and implementing a Complete Streets Policy.