Pedestrian Safety Workshop Request For Proposals (RFP)

Call for applications — Funding available to teach Pedestrian Safety Workshop: A Focus on Older Adults

Filing deadline: May 7, 2021

This call for applications is for organizations interested in teaching pedestrian safety workshops in their communities. Many places are interested in becoming more pedestrian-friendly to improve the health and livability of their community. Improving walking conditions can help residents enjoy the benefits of walking for errands, health, socializing, and other purposes. Older adults need special consideration when addressing walking conditions. Walking is an important source of physical activity and transportation for older adults. While older pedestrians are more likely to be involved in serious crashes than other age groups, there are many things communities can do to make walking safer for older adults. The Pedestrian Safety Workshop: A Focus on Older Adults, developed by the University of North Carolina Highway Safety Research Center (UNC HSRC), engages communities in addressing the pedestrian safety issues that older adults face and provides strategies for safer walking.

About the demonstration project

UNC HSRC was recently awarded a Cooperative Agreement from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) to disseminate the Pedestrian Safety Workshop: A Focus on Older Adults and provide technical assistance to select demonstration sites. As part of this project, HSRC is seeking up to 12 organizations interested in reducing pedestrian injuries among older adults to teach the Workshop four times. Each selected site will be provided with $2,500 for their participation in this 12-month demonstration project. This project's intent is to broaden dissemination of the Workshop and better understand how the Workshop helps communities improve pedestrian safety and walkability for older adults.

About the Workshop

The Workshop is designed to advance the process of creating more pedestrian friendly environments by both encouraging dialogue among a variety of community members and equipping participants with ideas to improve walkability in their community. The Workshop is expected to engage and benefit the community at large, with a specific focus on older pedestrians. Approximately three hours in length, the Workshop includes interactive slide presentations, a walkabout, and group discussion, as well as a takeaway "turnkey" presentation that participants can use to talk about safe walking for older adults. The Workshop is available online at http://www.rsa.unc.edu/psw.

Selected demonstration sites will benefit from:

  • An opportunity to adopt and use a pilot-tested workshop developed by national experts
  • Direct technical assistance from national experts in pedestrian safety, community mobilization, and training delivery
  • Opportunities to address and improve pedestrian conditions in their community
  • A forum for bringing together diverse groups of stakeholders to address issues of walkability for older adults
  • Access to all training materials, including PowerPoint slides, complete speaker notes, handout files, online instructor training and a downloadable instructor guide
  • A network of communities across the country who are also teaching the workshop and the chance to share experiences with those communities
  • Notification of new and existing resources, such as relevant webinars, trainings, and listservs

Project details

UNC HSRC will:

  • Provide $2,500 in financial support to demonstration project participants to be disbursed as follows (this payment schedule can be flexible depending on community conditions and need):
    • $500 will be provided at the beginning of the project, after participation in a kick-off meeting
    • $500 will be provided upon completion of the first of four workshop deliveries
    • $1,500 will be provided upon completion of all project requirements, including receipt of final report
  • Give technical expertise as needed in the form of emails, conference calls, and the provision of web-based or print materials as available
  • Offer guidance on planning and delivery of successful workshops

Selected sites will:

  • Complete the online instructor training available at http://www.rsa.unc.edu/psw
  • Plan and deliver four workshops, the first of which must be completed within three months of the project start date and the fourth no later than month 10 of the project
  • Submit brief quarterly written reports to describe progress
  • Participate in monthly teleconference calls to de-brief, share experiences with other communities, and discuss strategies for organizing and teaching the Workshop
  • Complete the Workshop evaluation components: a written questionnaire for Workshop participants, two interviews with each Workshop instructor, and a group interview with all demonstration site instructors
  • Write and submit a brief final report (no more than 5 pages) describing project activities and progress