Before & After Studies

Crosswalk study

The Vision Zero Action Plan states that we will review the efficacy of transportation safety mitigation measures by assessing conditions before and after implementation, which will inform future policies and implementation of such mitigation measures. This page summarizes the findings and next steps for before / after studies conducted on safety improvements, such as: 

  • Location-Based Before/After Studies - Assessment of crash rates before/after quick-build improvements or other hot spot improvements were installed at a location. 
  • Tool-Based Before/After Studies - Evaluation of the impact that an engineering tool has on safety across multiple locations. 
  • Pilot Safety Project Before/After Studies - Evaluation of the impact that a pilot safety project had on addressing the identified safety issue. 
  • Speed Management Before/After Studies - Assessment of before/after speeds along corridors with recent speed management treatments. 
  • High-Injury Network Before/After Studies - Assessment of before/after crash data and action item completion on corridors that underwent High-Injury Network Safety Audits.

View the sections below to learn more about past or ongoing before/after analysis for each of these categories.

Location-Based Before/After Studies

 

Tool-Based Before/After Studies

From 2023-2025, the County worked with third-party contractors to conduct a Tool-Based Before/After Studies project. The objective of the project was to evaluate how five engineering tools affected safety when applied in different location types in the County. 

The tools assessed and topline findings in the study include:

  • Curb modifications: Resulted in minor decreases in right turn vehicle speeds; More effective when markings accompanied by flex posts; More effective when bike lane not present.
  • Hardened centerlines: Resulted in significant decreases in left turn speeds and percentage of vehicles crossing the yellow line while turning; More effective when both mini speed humps and flex posts are installed for hardening.
  • Tactical speed humps: Resulted in significant decreases in speeds and speeding in school zone corridors; More effective when placed away from STOP sign locations.
  • Speed limit pavement markings in school slow zones: Resulted in minor decreases in average 85th percentile speeds but helpful in reducing vehicles traveling above 30mph.
  • No-turn-on-red signage: Resulted in moderate reduction in vehicles turning right on red; Some locations showed an increase in the amount of pedestrian/vehicle conflicts on the vehicular green/concurrent walk signal phases.

View the Before & After Studies Summary Report & Appendix here.(PDF, 8MB)

Pilot Safety Project Before/After Studies

Speed Management Before/After Studies

Since the adoption of Vision Zero, Arlington has implemented several initiatives to reduce speeds and improve safety on arterial roads throughout the County. After gathering data from before and after implementations, we’ve reviewed how effective these initiatives have been at reducing driver speeds. Learn more about each initiative below.

 

 

High-Injury Network Before/After Analysis

Vision Zero's High-Injury Network is updated every three years to identify and prioritize roadway segments with the highest concentrations of severe and fatal injuries. Within that three-year period, staff from across the Division of Transportation participate in roadway safety audits of each corridor to assess safety needs and identify action items. To ensure that audit action items are followed through and effectively reduce crash rates on the corridor, we conduct a review three years after each audit. See the bullets below for HIN Safety Audit Before/After reviews: