    Truck Safety: Share the Road Safely Program Needs Better
    Evaluation of Its Initiatives (30-MAY-03, GAO-03-680).

    From 1992 through 2001, more than 50,000 people were killed in
    crashes involving large commercial trucks. Although more than
    6,800 of these fatalities were truck occupants, approximately
    40,000 were passengers in other vehicles and more than 4,000 were
    nonmotorists. The Department of Transportation's Federal Motor
    Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) conducts a number of truck
    safety programs, including the Share the Road Safely program,
    whose goal is to educate the public about driving safely around
    large trucks. GAO examined (1) whether the program's initiatives
    are linked to this goal and (2) how FMCSA evaluates its Share the
    Road Safely program. GAO recommends that the Department of
    Transportation (DOT) ensure that the Share the Road Safely
    program initiatives are directly linked to the program's goal and
    establish a systematic
    -------------------------Indexing Terms-------------------------
    REPORTNUM:   GAO-03-680
        ACCNO:   A07050
      TITLE:     Truck Safety: Share the Road Safely Program Needs Better
    Evaluation of Its Initiatives
         DATE:   05/30/2003
      SUBJECT:   Highway safety
    	     Internal controls
    	     Motor vehicle safety
    	     Program evaluation
    	     DOT Share the Road Safely Program
    	     Large Truck Crash Causation Study

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    GAO-03-680

    Report to Congressional Committees

    United States General Accounting Office

    GAO

    May 2003 TRUCK SAFETY Share the Road Safely Program Needs Better
    Evaluation of Its Initiatives

    GAO- 03- 680

    The Share the Road Safely program*s goal is designed to educate the
    motoring public on how to share the road safely with commercial motor
    vehicles. To accomplish this goal, the program has undertaken a number of
    public education and information dissemination initiatives including a

    series of new initiatives beginning in 2000. Some initiatives, such as
    incorporating the program*s messages into state driver education manuals
    or developing share the road messages specifically targeted to certain
    types of drivers, pedestrians or motorcyclists, are clearly linked to the
    program*s goal. However, for a few other initiatives, such as directing
    program messages to elementary schoolchildren, the linkage is less clear.
    Research currently under way in the Department of

    Transportation may enable the program to link its initiatives to the most
    significant causes of truck/ car crashes. Many highway safety experts
    agree that public education efforts to increase safe driving around large
    trucks are more likely to produce substantial changes in drivers*
    behaviors if they are combined with other safety initiatives, such as
    local law enforcement programs. Share the Road Safely has recently begun
    to pilot test such a program.

    FMCSA evaluations of the Share the Road Safely program have provided some
    information about the program but have not convincingly demonstrated
    accomplishment of the program*s intended outcomes:

    changes in drivers* knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors. FMCSA has the
    opportunity to adopt a new evaluation strategy for its recent initiatives,
    for example, by using evaluation practices adopted by other federally
    sponsored information dissemination programs to improve its evaluation of
    the program.

    Collision Involving Passenger Vehicles and Large Commercial Trucks

    From 1992 through 2001, more than 50,000 people were killed in crashes
    involving large commercial trucks. Although more than 6,800 of these
    fatalities were truck occupants, approximately 40,000 were passengers in
    other vehicles and more than 4,000 were nonmotorists. The Department of
    Transportation*s Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration

    (FMCSA) conducts a number of truck safety programs, including the Share
    the Road Safely program, whose goal is to educate the public about driving
    safely around large

    trucks. GAO examined (1) whether the program*s initiatives are linked to
    this goal and (2) how FMCSA evaluates its Share the Road Safely program.

    GAO recommends that the Department of Transportation (DOT) ensure that the
    Share the Road Safely program initiatives are directly linked to the
    program*s goal and establish a systematic process for evaluating the

    effectiveness of the program. DOT generally agreed with our
    recommendations.

    www. gao. gov/ cgi- bin/ getrpt? GAO- 03- 680. To view the full report,
    including the scope and methodology, click on the link above. For more
    information, contact Kate Siggerud (202) 512- 2834 or siggerudk@ gao. gov.
    Highlights of GAO- 03- 680, a report to

    Congressional Committees

    May 2003

    TRUCK SAFETY

    Share the Road Safely Program Needs Better Evaluation of Its Initiatives

    Page i GAO- 03- 680 Truck Safety Letter 1 Results in Brief 3 Background 4
    Many Share the Road Safely Program Initiatives Are Linked to the Program*s
    Goal but a Few Lack Clear Linkage 10 Evaluations by FMCSA Provided Little
    Information on the

    Effectiveness of the Share the Road Program 13 Conclusion 18
    Recommendations for Executive Action 18 Agency Comments and Our Evaluation
    19 Figures

    Figure 1: Number of Vehicle Occupants Killed in Large Truck Crashes by
    Vehicle Type (1992 - 2001) 5 Figure 2: No- Zones, or Blind Spots, around a
    Large Commercial

    Truck 7 Figure 3: Share the Road Safely Program Funding (Fiscal Year 1992
    * 2003) 9 Abbreviations

    DOT Department of Transportation FMCSA Federal Motor Carrier Safety
    Administration FHWA Federal Highway Administration NHTSA National Highway
    Traffic Safety Administration TEA- 21 Transportation Equity Act for the 21
    st Century Contents

    This is a work of the U. S. government and is not subject to copyright
    protection in the United States. It may be reproduced and distributed in
    its entirety without further permission from GAO. However, because this
    work may contain copyrighted images or other material, permission from the
    copyright holder may be necessary if you wish to reproduce this material
    separately.

    Page 1 GAO- 03- 680 Truck Safety May 30, 2003 The Honorable Ernest Istook,
    Jr. Chairman

    The Honorable John W. Olver Ranking Minority Member Subcommittee on
    Transportation, Treasury,

    and Independent Agencies Committee on Appropriations House of
    Representatives

    The Honorable Richard Shelby Chairman The Honorable Patty Murray Ranking
    Minority Member Subcommittee on Transportation, Treasury,

    and General Government Committee on Appropriations United States Senate

    In 2001, there were 42,116 people killed on our nation*s roads, and
    3,033,000 people were injured. About 12 percent (5, 082) of the fatalities
    and 4 percent (131,000) of the injuries occurred in collisions involving
    large commercial trucks. 1 The majority of these crashes were collisions
    between passenger vehicles 2 and large commercial trucks; and, in such
    crashes, the occupants of passenger vehicles are more than 15 times more
    likely to be killed than truck occupants. The Federal Motor Carrier Safety
    Administration (FMCSA) recently set a goal to cut the fatality rate in
    large truck- related crashes by more than 40 percent, from its 1996 level
    by 2008. FMCSA*s Share the Road Safely program is designed to assist this
    effort by educating the motoring public on how to share the road safely
    with

    1 A large commercial truck is defined as a truck with gross weight rating
    greater than 10, 001 pounds. 2 For the purpose of this report, we are
    using the term passenger vehicle( s) to include cars, pickup trucks, sport
    utility vehicles, vans, and motorcycles. Passenger vehicles have a gross
    weight rating less than 10, 001 pounds.

    United States General Accounting Office Washington, DC 20548

    Page 2 GAO- 03- 680 Truck Safety commercial motor vehicles. 3 The program,
    established in 1994, initially attempted to publicize the dangers of
    driving unsafely around large trucks to the general public. In 2000, the
    program refocused its efforts toward all

    highways users with more specific messages for targeted audiences
    including car and truck drivers, senior drivers, and new or problem
    drivers. 4 The House report accompanying the Department of Transportation
    and

    Related Agencies Appropriations bill for 2003 directed us to evaluate the
    effectiveness of the Share the Road Safely program and submit the study to
    the House and Senate Committees on Appropriations. 5 We examined (1)
    whether the program*s initiatives are linked to its goal to educate the
    public about driving safely in and around large commercial trucks and (2)
    how FMCSA evaluates the program*s effectiveness.

    To determine whether the program*s initiatives are linked to its goal, we
    obtained information from FMCSA officials, including representatives from
    Safety Action Programs, the office responsible for Share the Road Safely,
    and other relevant FMCSA offices. We interviewed officials from the
    National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) as well as various
    external stakeholders and highway safety researchers. We reviewed program
    documents, including budget allocations from 1992 through 2003, for the
    Share the Road Safely program and other FMCSA safety programs. To
    determine how FMCSA evaluates its Share the Road Safely program, we
    reviewed evaluations performed by FMCSA as well as publications from NHTSA
    and GAO that describe evaluation criteria appropriate for use in
    evaluating public information dissemination programs such as the Share the
    Road Safely program. We conducted our review from January 2003 through May
    2003 in accordance with generally accepted government audit standards.

    3 *Commercial motor vehicles* includes buses as well as trucks, but nearly
    all the program*s initiatives have addressed driving behavior around
    trucks. In this report, we use the term *truck* unless buses are
    explicitly included in a specific program initiative. 4 Before 2000, the
    program was called *Share the Road.* Since 2000, FMCSA has used the term
    *Share the Road Safely* in part to indicate this shift in strategy. In
    this report, we generally use the term *Share the Road Safely,* except
    where it is necessary to distinguish the pre- 2000 program from its
    successor program.

    5 H. R. Rep. No. 107- 722, at 104 (2002).

    Page 3 GAO- 03- 680 Truck Safety Several of the Share the Road Safely
    program*s initiatives, such as incorporating Share the Road Safely
    messages into state driver education

    manuals and directing its messages to specific audiences, like pedestrians
    or motorcyclists, appear to be directly linked to the program*s goal, as
    established in the Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act of
    1991, of educating the motoring public on how to share the road safely
    with commercial motor vehicles. However, the linkage between the program
    goal and a few other program initiatives, such as providing the Share the
    Road Safely message to schoolchildren, is not as clear and direct.
    Research currently under way in the Department of Transportation (DOT) may
    enable FMCSA to direct program initiatives to ensure its initiatives are
    linked to the most significant causes of truck/ car crashes, such as
    speeding or unsafe lane changes. Many highway safety officials and
    researchers agree that public education efforts alone are unlikely to
    produce substantial changes in drivers* behaviors unless they are coupled

    with other safety initiatives, such as local enforcement programs to
    increase compliance with traffic laws. According to a FMCSA official,
    although the agency has not combined education and enforcement efforts in
    the past, it recently began a pilot of such a combined effort. For
    example, in keeping with this new approach, FMCSA has recently targeted
    six high- crash highway corridors to pilot an initiative that will combine

    local outreach through radio, television, and outdoor advertising, safety
    partnerships with local authorities and brochures with targeted police
    activity to deter unsafe driving in and around large trucks.

    FMCSA has not evaluated the effectiveness of initiatives implemented since
    2000, and its evaluations of earlier program initiatives provide only
    limited information. FMCSA has issued three reports about the program*s
    earlier initiatives that attempted to measure changes in the general
    public*s knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors about driving around large
    commercial trucks. These evaluations provide some information on the
    program*s activities and on how familiar drivers were with some concepts
    and behaviors promoted by the program, such as avoiding driving in large
    trucks* *blind spots.* However, these evaluations could not determine the
    program*s effectiveness for the following reasons:

     The evaluations relied heavily on self- reports of attitude and behavior
    change that are subject to biased responses.

     Because FMCSA did not have a baseline of driver knowledge and behavior
    before program initiatives were implemented, it could not determine the
    extent to which intended changes in behavior occurred. Results in Brief

    Page 4 GAO- 03- 680 Truck Safety  FMCSA could not determine whether any
    changes in driving behavior or the frequency of car/ truck crashes were
    attributable to program initiatives

    or to other influences. FMCSA believes that funding pilot program
    initiatives that are directed at specific target audiences (for example,
    senior citizens) in smaller geographic areas will enable FMCSA to more
    accurately measure the initiative*s effects on drivers* knowledge,
    attitude, and behaviors and determine whether the program has contributed
    to reducing the number of car/ truck crashes. Other federally sponsored
    information dissemination programs similar to the Share the Road Safely
    program, including some sponsored by other parts of DOT, have used various
    strategies to improve their evaluations* such as measuring targeted
    knowledge, attitude, and behavior changes before and after program
    exposure to assess change. FMCSA could use these or similar strategies to
    enhance future evaluations

    of Share the Road Safely. We are recommending that the Secretary of
    Transportation direct FMCSA to improve its strategic approach to the Share
    the Road Safely program by linking its activities more directly to its
    goals and establishing a systematic process for evaluating the
    effectiveness of the program. DOT officials commented on a draft of this
    report and generally agreed with our recommendations.

    Although fatalities resulting from crashes involving large commercial
    trucks have decreased in recent years (see fig. 1), this improvement may
    be difficult to sustain as more people and goods are moved throughout the
    nation. From 1992 through 2001, there were 50,375 6 people killed in large
    truck crashes. Of this total, 6,811 were large truck occupants while
    39,516 7 were people in other types of vehicles, and 4,048 8 were
    nonmotorists.

    Figure 1 shows the number of passenger vehicle and large truck occupants 6
    This figure includes passengers in cars, light trucks, large commercial
    trucks, and on motorcycles, and nonmotorists but excludes bus passengers
    and those fatalities classified by FMCSA as *other/ unknown.* 7 This
    figure includes passengers in cars and light trucks, and on motorcycles
    but excludes bus passengers and those fatalities classified by FMCSA as
    *other/ unknown.* 8 This figure includes pedestrians and pedalcyclists but
    excludes those fatalities classified by FMCSA as *other/ unknown.*
    Background

    Page 5 GAO- 03- 680 Truck Safety killed in passenger vehicle and large
    truck collisions from 1992 through 2001.

    Figure 1: Number of Vehicle Occupants Killed in Large Truck Crashes by
    Vehicle Type (1992 - 2001)

    Concerned with the number of crashes between passenger vehicles and large
    commercial trucks, Congress recognized the need to educate the general
    motoring public about certain characteristics of large commercial trucks
    and their operation. With the enactment of the Intermodal Surface
    Transportation Efficiency Act of 1991, Congress directed the Secretary of
    Transportation to educate the motoring public about how to share the

    Page 6 GAO- 03- 680 Truck Safety road safely with large commercial trucks
    and authorized at least $350,000 for fiscal years 1992 through 1997 for
    this purpose. 9 Through public outreach and education, in the early 1990s,
    Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) began exploring ways to decrease the

    number of passenger vehicle and large commercial truck crashes and
    ultimately reduce injuries and fatalities. FHWA sponsored focus group
    studies conducted with passenger vehicle drivers, the highway safety
    community, and trucking industry officials to determine the concerns of
    the public about large commercial truck safety. Passenger vehicle drivers
    who participated in these group discussions mentioned the size and weight
    of heavy trucks, truck drivers* aggressiveness, effects of truckdriver
    fatigue, and traffic congestion as some safety concerns. Passenger vehicle
    drivers also reported feeling outmatched by the size and weight of large
    commercial trucks and said that truck drivers drive too fast, too far, and
    too many hours without proper rest to be safe. They cited the mixing of
    large commercial trucks and other vehicles in congested traffic conditions
    and inclement weather as major concerns. FHWA*s analysis of the focus
    group studies indicated that the number of crashes involving passenger
    vehicles and large commercial trucks might be reduced if motorists
    understood the special characteristics of large commercial trucks, such as
    longer braking distances and larger blind spots.

    In 1992, in response to Congress* concerns and in support of FHWA*s goal
    of reducing highway fatalities, FHWA began to develop a national public
    service highway safety program called *Share the Road* to educate
    passenger vehicle drivers on how to share the road safely with large
    commercial trucks. The Share the Road program was the first public
    information dissemination program intended to alert passenger vehicle
    drivers about blind spots or *no- zones* around a large commercial truck
    in which the truck driver*s visibility is limited.

    The first phase of the program was popularly known as the *No- Zone
    Campaign.* This campaign was designed to increase passenger vehicle
    drivers* awareness of commercial drivers* visibility limitations in an
    effort to influence the passenger vehicle drivers* behavior and thus
    decrease the

    number of crashes involving passenger vehicles and large commercial 9 In
    1998, the Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century (TEA- 21)
    included the same requirement to educate the motoring public on how to
    share the road safely with commercial motor vehicles, but TEA- 21
    authorized at least $500,000 to be appropriated from the Highway Trust
    Fund for fiscal years 1998 through 2003.

    Page 7 GAO- 03- 680 Truck Safety trucks and, ultimately, reduce
    fatalities, injuries, and property damage. Figure 2 shows no- zones, or
    blind spots, around a large commercial truck.

    Figure 2: No- Zones, or Blind Spots, around a Large Commercial Truck

    On January 1, 2000, FMCSA was established within DOT pursuant to the Motor
    Carrier Safety Improvement Act of 1999, and its mission was to reduce the
    number and severity of large- truck involved crashes. FMCSA became
    responsible for developing and implementing initiatives for the Share the
    Road program as well as other commercial vehicle safety programs. FMCSA
    changed the focus of the Share the Road program from a public outreach
    initiative emphasizing the No- Zone Campaign to a discrete program within
    its Safety Actions Program Division and renamed it *Share the Road
    Safely.* The Share the Road Safely program is intended to target all
    highway users 10 to increase their awareness about the inherent danger of
    driving in and around large commercial trucks and modify driver behaviors.
    FMCSA officials believe that through education and outreach to specific
    target audiences, highway users will be persuaded to change their behavior
    with the eventual result being a reduction in commercial motor

    vehicle crashes. Consequently, the program has begun educational
    initiatives directed at such discrete audiences as senior drivers, new or
    problem drivers, commercial motor vehicle drivers, school trip planners,
    and drivers in specific geographic areas.

    The Share the Road Safely program is a small part of a group of truck
    safety programs administered by FMCSA to reduce large commercial truck-
    related injuries and fatalities. In 2003, FMCSA set an overall goal of
    reducing the rate of large commercial truck- related fatalities from the
    1996 rate of 2.8 fatalities per 100 million truck miles traveled to 1.65
    fatalities

    10 Include pedestrians, bicyclists, and drivers of commercial vehicles,
    cars, motorcyclists, and recreational vehicles.

    Page 8 GAO- 03- 680 Truck Safety per 100 million truck miles traveled by
    2008. 11 FMCSA programs are intended to contribute to this goal by
    addressing safety in motor carrier

    operations through identifying and enforcing safety regulations that
    target high- risk carriers and large commercial truck drivers, improving
    safety information systems and commercial motor vehicle technologies,
    strengthening commercial motor vehicle equipment and operating standards,
    and increasing safety awareness. According to agency officials, FMCSA
    coordinates its programs with other federal, state, and local enforcement
    agencies, the motor carrier industry, highway safety advocacy groups, and
    others.

    The fiscal year 2003 funding for the Share the Road Safely program
    represents less than 1 percent of FMCSA*s total budget. From fiscal year
    1992 through 2003, about $6.8 million, or an average of $569,000 per year,
    was spent on the program. 12 Figure 3 illustrates the funding for the
    Share the Road Safely program since its inception in fiscal year 1992.

    11 In 1999, DOT had set a goal of reducing large commercial truck- related
    fatalities by 50 percent, from 5, 380 to 2,690, by the year 2010.
    According to FMCSA officials, the agency revised its goal to better align
    it with the DOT Highway Safety performance goal and FHWA and NHTSA
    measures.

    12 From fiscal year 1992 through fiscal year 1999, the program*s
    initiatives were funded primarily in the form of grants through the Motor
    Carrier Safety Assistance Program. However, since fiscal year 2000 the
    program*s budget has come primarily as a $500,000 annual *pass through*
    funding from NHTSA; other funding* about $125,000 annually*

    comes through funding from the Research and Technology Office.

    Page 9 GAO- 03- 680 Truck Safety Figure 3: Share the Road Safely Program
    Funding (Fiscal Year 1992 * 2003)

    Note: TEA- 21 directed the Secretary of Transportation to obligate
    $500,000 for each of fiscal years 1998 through 2003 for the Share the Road
    program. However, the program did not receive these funds in fiscal year
    1998 because the funding had already been committed by the time the act
    was

    passed in June 1998.

    According to FMCSA officials, the agency partners with public and private
    organizations nationwide to promote the Share the Road Safely program*s
    mission, pool safety ideas and resources, and minimize the duplication of
    efforts. For example, FMCSA works with a coalition that includes such
    members as the American Association of Motor Vehicle Administrators, 13
    AAA, 14 and the American Trucking Associations, 15 and state and local

    agencies. The coalition provides FMCSA with feedback on and assistance
    with the program*s goal. In addition to these efforts, most Share the Road
    resources are used to hire contractors to develop and implement the

    13 The American Association of Motor Vehicle Administrators is a tax-
    exempt, nonprofit organization that works to develop model programs in
    motor vehicle administration, police traffic services, and highway safety.

    14 AAA, formerly known as the American Automobile Association, is a not-
    for- profit, taxpaying federation of 77 motor clubs serving 46 million
    members in the United States and Canada.

    15 American Trucking Associations, Inc., is the national trade association
    of the trucking industry.

    Page 10 GAO- 03- 680 Truck Safety products and services (for example,
    maintaining a Web site and developing educational materials) for the Share
    the Road Safely program. The contracts for these products and services
    have ranged from $25,000 to

    $300, 000 since 2000 and are generally awarded for 1 year periods, but
    they can be modified and extended with approval from FMCSA. Since fiscal
    year 2000, FMCSA has awarded 13 contracts for various products and
    services for the Share the Road Safely program. 16 Although a clear
    rationale exists for several Share the Road Safely

    initiatives, a few initiatives are not clearly linked to the program*s
    safety goal. The program has begun to target specific driving behaviors
    more likely to have a direct safety impact. Finally, public educational
    approaches are generally considered more effective when combined with
    other safety efforts, such as enhanced enforcement of traffic laws, and
    FMCSA is beginning to combine these initiatives in the Share the Road
    Safely program.

    Several of the initiatives in the Share the Road Safely program are
    generally linked to the program*s goal, as established in the Intermodal
    Surface Transportation Efficiency Act of 1991, to educate the public about
    sharing the road safely with large commercial vehicles. Examples of clear
    links to the program goal includes (1) targeting Share the Road Safely
    messages at specific groups, such as new or problem drivers, pedestrians,
    or motorcyclists; (2) using radio and print public service announcements
    as well as interactive CD- ROMs; (3) developing and maintaining a Share
    the Road Safely Web site that provides downloadable information suitable

    for specific audiences; and (4) introducing more information about sharing
    the road with large commercial trucks into state driver education manuals
    and driver training curricula.

    Yet not all the program*s initiatives are directly linked to its goal. For
    example, in recent years the program has awarded contracts for such
    initiatives as educating school trip planners on using safe bus companies
    for students* field trips and providing the Share the Road Safely message
    to schoolchildren. According to FMCSA officials, these initiatives
    accounted for about $255,000 for fiscal years 2001 through 2002, or

    16 FMCSA officials told us that they did not have contract information for
    fiscal years 1992 through 1999. Many Share the Road

    Safely Program Initiatives Are Linked to the Program*s Goal but a Few Lack
    Clear Linkage

    A Few Program Initiatives Are Not Clearly Linked to the Program*s Goal

    Page 11 GAO- 03- 680 Truck Safety approximately 20 percent of the
    program*s budget for that period. According to an FMCSA official, one of
    the Share the Road Safely

    initiatives* Moving Kids Safely* educates school trip planners about how
    to select safe bus companies to transport students on field trips.
    According to this official, the initiative stresses the importance of
    choosing a charter transportation company that has a satisfactory safety
    record in order to

    reduce the risk of crashes, injuries, and fatalities involving
    schoolchildren. FMCSA officials pointed out that this can change the way
    bus companies are hired for school trips and contribute to the goal of
    reducing school bus crashes. However, it is not clear how the initiative
    contributes to the program*s goal of educating the public about sharing
    the road with commercial motor vehicles.

    Similarly, according to program officials, FMCSA joined the ongoing
    *Trucker Buddy* initiative, a national program sponsored by the trucking
    industry. The initiative*s purpose was to test the effectiveness of
    targeting students at various stages of the public education system to
    determine how much the children had learned about the safety issues
    concerning large commercial trucks, to improve their knowledge of the
    truck driving profession, and to assess whether this information was
    communicated to their parents. The initiative included such activities as
    truckers visiting

    elementary school classrooms and students establishing pen- pal
    relationships with truckers. While these activities may prove to have some
    long- term effect on the children*s behavior when they become drivers, or

    may have affected their parents* driving behaviors, the connection between
    the initiative and the goal of educating the motoring public is indirect.
    According to FMCSA officials, FMCSA*s participation in this joint
    initiative ended in March 2003.

    Research conducted in the late 1990s enabled FMCSA to broaden the Share
    the Road program beyond the No- Zone Campaign to include other initiatives
    related to sharing the road with large commercial vehicles. The driving
    behaviors targeted by the pre- 2000 Share the Road program were not
    sufficiently specific to allow drivers to take effective actions to reduce
    crashes. Because police reports cited the behavior of passenger vehicle
    drivers in crashes more frequently than the behavior of large commercial
    truck drivers, Share the Road initially emphasized its *no- zone* theme
    and focused its efforts on passenger vehicle drivers. However, subsequent
    research sponsored by FHWA concluded that, at most, only 35 percent of
    fatal passenger vehicle and large commercial truck collisions are
    attributable to passenger vehicles traveling in the no- zone. According to
    FMCSA officials, since 2000 the Share the Road Safely program has Program
    Currently Targets

    More Specific Driver Behaviors than in Earlier Phase

    Page 12 GAO- 03- 680 Truck Safety recognized the need to shift its focus
    from a *no- zone* approach to one that better addresses the causes of
    passenger vehicle and large

    commercial truck collisions in order to develop stronger links between
    Share the Road Safely program goal and its initiatives. A 1999 FHWA report
    concluded that *more comprehensive data on the causes of passenger vehicle
    and large commercial truck crashes of all severities would enhance FHWA*s
    ability to develop effective countermeasures and prevent future crashes.*
    Since then, FMCSA and NHTSA*s National Center for Statistics and Analysis
    have begun a Large Truck Crash Causation

    Study to determine the causes and associated factors contributing to
    serious large commercial truck crashes so that agencies within DOT and
    others can implement effective countermeasures to reduce the occurrence
    and severity of such crashes. This is the first national study of its kind
    and is designed to code all factors that might be crash related for later
    analysis. FMCSA expects to release the study*s database to the public
    early in 2005.

    Highway safety researchers and safety advocates we interviewed agreed that
    attempts to modify the behavior of drivers are more effective when
    educational approaches are combined with enforcement efforts. This
    conclusion is supported by the evaluation of past educational efforts to
    change driver behavior, in particular efforts to reduce drunk driving or
    increase safety belt usage. 17 For this reason, according to a NHTSA
    official, NHTSA public information campaigns are frequently combined with
    wellpublicized local police activities to enforce compliance with traffic
    ordinances prohibiting behaviors such as driving while impaired or driving
    without a safety belt.

    FMCSA recently began an initiative that would link educational outreach
    with enforcement. It plans to pilot test the effectiveness of combining
    Share the Road Safely messages with local outreach and enforcement

    17 U. S. General Accounting Office, Motor Vehicle Safety: Comprehensive
    State Programs Offer Best Opportunity for Increasing Use of Safety Belts,
    GAO/ RCED- 96- 24 (Washington, D. C.: Jan 3, 1996); U. S. General
    Accounting Office, Highway Safety: Effectiveness of State .08 Blood
    Alcohol Laws, GAO/ RCED- 99- 179 (Washington, D. C.: June 23, 1999). See
    also

    *Education Alone Won*t Make Drivers Safer,* Status Report: Insurance
    Institute for Highway Safety 36: 5 (May 19, 2001); Adrian K. Lund and
    Allan F. Williams, *A Review of the Literature Evaluating the Defensive
    Driving Course,* Accident Analysis and Prevention 17: 6 (1985); Carolyn B.
    Liban et al., *The Canadian Drinking- Driving Countermeasure Experience,*
    Accident Analysis and Prevention 19: 3 (1987); James B. Jacobs, Drunk
    Driving, An American Dilemma (Chicago: University of Chicago Press,

    1989). Successful Initiatives

    Combine Educational Outreach with Local Enforcement Efforts

    Page 13 GAO- 03- 680 Truck Safety initiatives. The pilot test will include
    outreach material, such as outdoor advertising and brochures, to educate
    and increase the awareness of

    passenger vehicle drivers on roads that have a disproportionately high
    number of large commercial truck crashes. The primary emphasis will be on
    the inability of large trucks to stop as quickly as cars and the hazard
    created when cars cut in front of trucks on the highway. The pilot will
    also emphasize to large commercial truck drivers the need for greater
    patience and defensive driving in these high crash corridors. In June
    2003, FMCSA

    plans to pilot test these Share the Road Safely messages in conjunction
    with enhanced state- level enforcement of traffic violations, such as
    aggressive driving and tailgating in six corridors throughout the country
    that have a high volume of large commercial truck crashes. According to a
    FMCSA official, as part of this initiative, FMCSA will measure the
    relative safety improvements in these high- volume, truck crash corridors
    in order to identify effective safety strategies that could lead to the
    development of community- based programs to reduce the number of crashes
    between

    large commercial trucks and passenger vehicles. A program*s effectiveness
    can be determined by assessing how far a program has progressed toward
    achieving its intended outcomes. FMCSA has attempted to measure the
    effectiveness of some of the program*s initiatives, but these evaluations
    provide only limited information on the program*s success in changing
    driver behavior. FMCSA has not attempted to evaluate the Share the Road
    Safely program since 2000; however, it has taken steps that may help it
    improve its evaluations of the program*s

    effectiveness in the future. In addition, practices used by other entities
    both within and outside DOT to evaluate information dissemination programs
    illustrate strategies that FMCSA could use to improve its evaluations.
    Evaluations by

    FMCSA Provided Little Information on the Effectiveness of the Share the
    Road Program

    Page 14 GAO- 03- 680 Truck Safety A program evaluation is a systematic
    process that uses objective measures to analyze how well a program is
    achieving its goals. In a recent report, 18 we noted that articulating the
    logic* or strategy* of an information dissemination program like Share the
    Road Safely could help the agency

    identify expected short- term, intermediate, or long- term outcomes and
    how to measure them. A clearly stated program strategy that articulates
    how a program*s initiatives are expected to achieve its desired goals
    enables the program*s managers to measure activities (for example, the
    number of TV advertisements broadcast or workshops held); outputs (for
    example, the portion of the target audience exposed to TV advertisements
    or participating in workshops); and outcomes* the changes effected in the
    target audience by the program. Many programs routinely track their
    activities and outputs; however, an outcome program evaluation 19 assesses
    actual changes in the audience*s knowledge, attitude, and behavior that
    lead to an improvement in the conditions the program was designed to
    improve. Such an evaluation measures the extent to which a program has
    achieved its intended short- term, intermediate, and long- term outcomes.

    For an information dissemination program, short- term outcomes would
    typically include gains in the audience*s knowledge and changes in its
    attitude about the issue addressed by the program. For Share the Road
    Safely, short- term outcomes would include positive changes in motorists*
    or pedestrians* beliefs and positive reactions to the program*s safety

    messages. Intermediate outcomes would include positive changes in the
    audience*s behavior, such as not cutting in front of large trucks or
    tailgating. Long- term outcomes represent the ultimate objective of the
    program. For the Share the Road Safely program, a long- term outcome

    would be contributing to a reduction in the number of fatal collisions
    involving large commercial trucks and other vehicles or pedestrians.
    Changes in this outcome, while easy to measure, can be difficult to
    ascribe to the program because alternative explanations, such as
    improvements in the design of trucks and other vehicles, safety
    improvements in roadway design, or safety initiatives of other FMCSA
    safety programs can also be credited with contributing toward any
    progress.

    18 U. S. General Accounting Office, Program Evaluation: Strategies for
    Assessing How Information Dissemination Contributes to Agency Goals, GAO-
    02- 923 (Washington, D. C.: September 2002). 19 U. S. General Accounting
    Office, Performance Measurement and Evaluation: Definitions and
    Relationships, GAO/ GGD- 98- 26 (Washington, D. C.: April 1998). Program
    Evaluation Uses

    Objective Measures to Examine the Effectiveness of a Program*s
    Contributions to ShortTerm, Intermediate, or Long- Term Outcomes

    Page 15 GAO- 03- 680 Truck Safety We recently reviewed a number of
    federally sponsored information dissemination programs, including efforts
    to enhance compliance with

    environmental regulations and reduce youth drug use. 20 We identified
    several strategies that were used to improve the evaluations of such
    programs. They included such practices as

     developing common measures for national evaluations,  comparing before-
    and- after reports to assess change,  using statistical methods to limit
    external influences, and  adjusting the wording of survey questions to
    reduce potential bias.

    The programs we reviewed were substantially more costly efforts than the
    initiatives conducted for Share the Road Safely program and consequently
    their evaluations were correspondingly more extensive. However, the
    strategies these programs developed to improve their evaluations can be
    scaled appropriately to smaller initiatives like those in the Share the
    Road Safely program.

    FMCSA has issued three reports 21 about the Share the Road program*s
    progress and initiatives. In 1997 and 1999, FMCSA reported on the
    program*s progress toward achieving its goal and concluded that the
    program was effective in communicating the dangers inherent in large
    commercial truck interaction with passenger vehicles and on providing
    useful information on safe driving behaviors for the target audience.
    FMCSA also reported that since 1994, the program has made significant

    accomplishments in implementing its planned activities. For example, Share
    the Road messages were seen and heard throughout the country on
    billboards, radio, and television and in schools and driver education

    classes. 20 GAO- 02- 923. 21 No- Zone Campaign Goals and Activities
    Summary Report (March 1997), Share the Road Campaign Research Study Final
    Report (June 1999), U. S. Department of Transportation, Federal Highway
    Administration, Office of Motor Carrier and Highway

    Safety; and No- Zone Campaign Assessment (October 2000) U. S. Department
    of Transportation, Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration.
    Evaluations of the Share

    the Road Program Did Not Fully Measure the Program*s Outcomes

    Page 16 GAO- 03- 680 Truck Safety In 2000, FMCSA issued a report that
    addressed changes in drivers* knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors while
    driving in the vicinity of large

    trucks as a result of its Share the Road initiatives to that point. The
    agency surveyed 1,100 licensed drivers and found that 58 percent of the
    respondents had seen or heard the phrase *Share the Road*; and 59 percent
    said they changed their behavior when they learned about some of the
    special characteristics of large trucks, such as longer braking distances
    and larger blind spots. However, FMCSA could not directly link these

    behavior changes to the Share the Road program. Only 13 percent of
    respondents had seen or heard the phrase *No- Zone** the major focus of
    the program*s initiatives at that time. Although these studies shed some
    light on the extent of the Share the

    Road program*s outputs, they did not fully measure the program*s outcomes.
    The studies provide some information on the initiatives the program has
    sponsored and on drivers* familiarity with some concepts and behaviors
    promoted by the program. They shed little light on the shortterm,
    intermediate, and long- term outcomes for three reasons. First, FMCSA*s
    evaluations relied heavily on self- reports of the target audience*s
    attitude and behavior change that were highly subject to positively biased
    responses; that is, respondents are likely to provide socially desirable

    responses. 22 For example, when a positive- sounding program such as
    *Share the Road* is mentioned, respondents are likely to report being
    familiar with and heeding its message. 23 Second, because no baseline of
    driver knowledge and behavior prior to the program had been established,
    FMCSA could not determine the extent to which any changes in these

    intended short- term outcomes actually occurred. 24 Third, if changes did
    occur, FMCSA had no way of knowing whether these changes were the result
    of program activities or other influences. 25 22 GAO- 02- 923.

    23 The fact that 58 percent of respondents reported being familiar with
    *Share the Road,* but only 13 percent were familiar with *No- Zone** the
    program*s primary initiative* suggests the likely influence of a positive
    bias.

    24 The Trucker Buddy program is a small exception. As part of the program,
    elementary schoolchildren were tested on their knowledge of trucks before
    and after instruction on the subject. They demonstrated a 21 percent
    improvement. 25 Other similar programs, such as those sponsored by
    trucking organizations, automobile

    associations, and insurance companies, strive for goals similar to those
    in FMCSA*s Share the Road Safely program. These organizations and
    associations have programs that specifically address the needs of
    passenger and commercial vehicle drivers.

    Page 17 GAO- 03- 680 Truck Safety There are other methods that can be used
    to assess the effectiveness of information dissemination programs such as
    Share the Road Safely. For

    example, the Office of National Drug Control Policy used a media campaign
    to counteract images that were perceived as glamorizing or condoning drug
    use. Under the direction of the National Institute on Drug Abuse, a
    contractor conducted a national evaluation of the campaign. The evaluation
    surveyed households in the targeted markets to assess advertisement
    awareness, knowledge, attitudes, and behavior, including drug use, in a
    representative sample of youths and their parents or other caretakers. The
    evaluation could not compare its sample with a control group that had not
    been exposed to the media campaign because the campaign ran nationally.
    Therefore, the evaluation used a *dose- response* design to measure the
    degree of respondents* exposure to the campaign and assess whether
    adoption of the desired attitudes and behaviors was positively correlated
    with their exposure.

    The experiences of other administrations within DOT, such as NHTSA, could
    also help FMCSA in its evaluations of the Share the Road Safely program.
    FMCSA officials acknowledged that NHTSA possesses expertise in developing
    and evaluating information dissemination programs aimed at improving
    drivers* safety consciousness and driving behaviors. For example, in May
    2001, NHTSA conducted a regional *Click It or Ticket* campaign in several
    southeastern states to increase safety belt use through media outreach
    combined with intense state- level enforcement of safety belt use laws.
    Evaluation of the campaign found an increase in safety belt use that was
    correlated with the amount of advertisements publicizing the

    campaign and consequent public awareness of the heightened enforcement
    activities.

    FMCSA officials told us that they have performed no evaluation of the
    Share the Road Safely program since 2000. However, they also told us that
    they recognize the need for improved evaluation of the program*s outcomes
    and that this was one factor considered in the refocus of the program
    beginning in 2000. Prior evaluations had attempted to measure the national
    penetration of the Share the Road program message, particularly its no-
    zone message. Because their post- 2000 strategy has emphasized specific
    target groups or geographic areas, officials expect that they will be
    better able to measure the effectiveness of focused pilot tests and
    determine the relative effectiveness of different initiatives before
    expanding them or offering them as models for state or local emulation.

    FMCSA officials pointed to the combined education/ enforcement initiative
    planned for six corridors with high numbers of truck crashes as a recent
    Other Methods for Evaluating Information

    Dissemination Programs Exist

    FMCSA Expects to Perform More Meaningful Evaluations of the Share the Road
    Safely Program in the Future

    Page 18 GAO- 03- 680 Truck Safety example of this more targeted approach
    that they expect will allow them to make more meaningful evaluations of
    changes in driver behavior and,

    ultimately, in car/ truck crash frequency. However, because none of the
    pilot initiatives undertaken during the post- 2000 Share the Road Safely
    program has been completed, FMCSA has no outcome measures to assess

    the effectiveness of the program. The Share the Road Safely program
    currently consists of a number of relatively new pilot initiatives in
    various stages of implementation. These initiatives are designed to
    contribute to FMCSA*s goal of reducing the fatality rate associated with
    large commercial vehicles; however, we found that in some cases their link
    to the program*s goal of educating the public about driving safely around
    large commercial vehicles was tenuous. Given

    that findings from DOT*s research* which may help identify specific
    behaviors contributing to car/ truck crashes* will soon be available and
    that FMCSA*s pilot initiatives are still not fully implemented, FMCSA has
    an opportunity to ensure that the initiatives are organized into a program
    strategy that explicitly links them to the program*s overall goal.

    In addition, FMCSA has not evaluated the effectiveness of Share the Road
    Safely since 2000. We recognize that the program*s relatively small budget
    demands that its evaluation activities be scaled appropriately to the size
    of its initiatives. Yet it is important that FMCSA incorporate the best
    evaluation practices that are available from federal and other sources to
    the extent practicable to ensure that the agency does not expend its
    limited resources on initiatives of uncertain or unknown effectiveness.
    The program*s shift to more limited pilot initiatives offers the
    opportunity for appropriately scaled evaluations. More rigorous
    evaluations than those conducted in the past could be used to enhance
    FMCSA*s ability to direct its resources to more cost- effective
    initiatives that are clearly linked to the program*s goal.

    To ensure that FMCSA*s Share the Road Safely program initiatives
    contribute to the agency*s goal to reduce the number of collisions between
    large commercial trucks and other highway users, we recommend that the
    Secretary of Transportation direct the FMCSA administrator to

     develop an explicit program strategy that clearly and directly links
    FMCSA*s Share the Road Safely program initiatives to its goal and uses the
    results of the Large Truck Crash Causation Study as they become

    available, as well as other relevant highway safety data, in order to
    identify Conclusion

    Recommendations for Executive Action

    Page 19 GAO- 03- 680 Truck Safety specific behaviors that contribute to
    passenger vehicle and large commercial truck crashes, thus more
    effectively targeting the limited

    resources of the Share the Road Safely program; and  establish a
    systematic strategy for evaluating the Share the Road Safely program*s
    initiatives that makes greater use where practical of DOT*s

    experience in designing and evaluating information dissemination programs
    to enhance highway safety. DOT officials reviewed a draft of this report
    and generally agreed with our

    recommendations. They also made some technical comments that we have
    incorporated into this report as appropriate.

    We are sending copies of this report to congressional committees and
    subcommittees with responsibilities for transportation and the Secretary
    of Transportation. We will make copies available to others upon request.
    In addition, the report will be available at no charge on the GAO Web site
    at http:// www. gao. gov.

    If you or your staff have any questions about this report, please contact
    either Robert White at whitere@ gao. gov or me at siggerudk@ gao. gov.
    Alternatively, we may be reached at (202) 512- 2834. Key contributors to
    this report were Sally Gilley, Brandon Haller, Octavia Parks, Jason
    Schwartz, and Susan Michal- Smith.

    Katherine Siggerud Acting Director, Physical Infrastructure Issues Agency
    Comments

    and Our Evaluation

    (542018)

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