This project will increase safety for vulnerable road users in the underserved communities of the Downtown Eastside (DTES) through road safety education accompanied by physical interventions of distribution of safety equipment and mechanical repairs. The project is rooted in trauma informed practices, creating a safe space, empowerment, with opportunities for involvement in all levels, and designed through community input and engagement.
The educational portion is low barrier, to meet people where they are at and includes skill share where knowledge keepers, could be a volunteer, community member, peer worker, or mechanic, will share on road safety topic. These more formal educational opportunities will go on to be shared at the clinics through engagement with community members, and beyond that through people's personal lives and relationships. Together these offerings take a holistic approach and add additional layer of safety to these road users.
The BC Road Safety Strategy identifies that people who walk, cycle, or use another type of mobility device other than a car are particularly vulnerable and at an increased risk when sharing the roadways with vehicles. This project supports road users with additional layers of vulnerability such as those requiring mobility aids. Spinal cord injury BC states that wheelchair users had a 36 percent higher risk of being involved in a fatal collision than non-wheelchair users in the USA (2006 - 2012).
Researchers at Simon Fraser University and the University of British Columbia (2009) found that 10% of pedestrian injuries in the city take place on the DTES. This neighbourhood is home to a disproportionately large number of vulnerable road users including seniors, families with children, people with disabilities, mental illness, and addictions as well as some of Vancouver’s most marginalized residents. It also has the highest proportion of Indigenous people in the city at 31%.
The educational components will inspire safe road choices by offering relevant information that takes into account the experiences and knowledge if the DTES residents. According to Trauma-Informed Care in Homelessness Service Settings, it has been found that using trauma-informed care is associated with enhanced client engagement, retention in treatment, and improved organizational health and effectiveness. The low barrier focus takes into account that someone who know how to ride a bike, may not know the rules of the road, or how to navigate safely around their neighborhood. The skill sharing and community approach empowers the local DTES residents to become engaged participants.
Safety equipment that has been requested by the community ranges to everything from helmets, lights and visibility aids, to more nuanced items like accessories that will allow them to more safely transport groceries or other loads. The CDC states that head injuries account for 62% of bicycle-related deaths, and 67% of bicycle-related hospital admissions. It recommends community programs can increase bicycle helmet use can reduce the incidence of head injury among bicycle riders, thereby reducing the number of riders who are killed or disabled. The Cycling in Cities research program at UBC (2012) found that a higher proportion of head injuries were severe among cyclists' whose bicycles were not equipped with reflectors (69%) as compared with those whose bicycles had reflectors (5.7%).
This project is low barrier in nature, much needed mechanical repairs can be as simple as ensuring brakes are working on bikes, walkers or wheelchairs. Participants can also learn how to better assess when they need mechanical support. Low barrier education, provision of safety equipment, combined with mechanical repairs, will remove barriers for vulnerable road users experiencing social inequity, change how people interact with their road system, and ultimately reduce road-related injuries.
