2023 Toward Zero Deaths Conference Preliminary Program

Honor Guard

Detention Deputy Natalie Falls, Olmsted County Sheriff's Office
Trooper Cody Kisor, Minnesota State Patrol
Detention Deputy Chris Meyers, Olmsted County Sheriff's Office
Officer Matt Venteicher, Rochester Police Department

Speakers

Mike Hanson, Minnesota TZD Program Co-chair, and Director, Office of Traffic Safety, Minnesota Department of Public Safety
Mayor Kim Norton, City of Rochester

Speaker

Jermaine Galloway, Tall Cop Says Stop

This session will give attendees the ability, knowledge, and confidence to identify individuals who are abusing drugs and/or alcohol. Attendees will also be taught the strategies and different terms consistent with alcohol and/or drug abuse. Several identifiers, logos, and terms commonly related to drug (illegal and over the counter) and alcohol abuse, marijuana abuse, and drug concealment on school, home, and work property will be discussed with the assistance of a multitude of visual aids.

Moderator

Katy Kressin, West Central TZD Regional Coordinator

Speaker

John McClellan, Metro Freeway Operations, Minnesota Department of Transportation

Motor vehicle crashes are a leading cause of traumatic death for police, fire, EMS, and tow operators. This TIM training will share best practices to improve safety for crash victims, responders, and other vehicles on the road.

Moderator

KaRee Liimatainen, FDL Human Services

Speakers

Daniella Brown, UPPAbaby
Vera Fullaway, Safe Traffic System Inc.
Tony Jerisha, Kids Embrace
Eve Miller, Evenflo
Bob Wall, Nuna Baby Essentials Inc.

Child safety seats are constantly changing. Child Passenger Safety Technicians (CPSTs) are on the “front line,” working every day to ensure parents and caregivers know how the newest restraints work to protect their precious cargo. Learn about the latest child restraint updates directly from the manufacturers as they show off their latest products.  Approved for 1.5 CPS CEU credits.

Moderator

Scot Edgeworth, East Metro TZD Regional Coordinator

Speakers

Kelli Cassidy Friese, Ed’s Collision & Glass and St. Cloud State University–Minnesota Highway Safety Research Center
Yash Dagade, Shreya R. Dixit Memorial Foundation
Abhi Nallamalli, Shreya R. Dixit Memorial Foundation
Tara Olds, Connected and Automated Vehicles Office, Minnesota Department of Transportation
Leah Walton, National Transportation Safety Board

This session will look at the growing influence of value-added automotive components, both for comfort and for safety, and the motives that led to their development. Safety components continue to have a positive impact on reducing crashes. Speakers will discuss the implications of these components and how they can help drivers be safer on the road, as well as the impact of vehicle safety technology on road fatalities and injuries. This session will also discuss roadway crash investigations that produced safety recommendations, highlighting automotive technologies as well as what research and demonstration work is underway in Minnesota to help people learn about new technology. Lastly, teens will showcase EyeDA, an intelligent technology for traffic and safety that merges cutting-edge hardware, innovative software, and advanced road data analysis. 

Moderator

Derek Leuer, Office of Traffic Engineering, Minnesota Department of Transportation

Speakers

Matt Dyrdahl, Alta Planning & Design
Sonja Piper, Office of Traffic Engineering, Minnesota Department of Transportation
 
Minnesota just completed the Vulnerable Road User Safety Assessment, an addendum to the Strategic Highway Safety Plan, as required by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law/Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act. This assessment analyzed the state’s vulnerable road-user crashes and developed a data dashboard for everyone. The project team documented MnDOT’s work surrounding the safety of vulnerable road users, highlighted what still needs to be done, and identified project strategies and programs.

Moderator

Bill Van Koevering, East Central TZD Regional Coordinator

Speakers

Commander Kat Brown, St. Paul Police Department 
Jeff Lenz, Minnesota Department of Transportation 
Shonette Micco, BS, EMT, CPST-I, Regions Hospital 
Brenda Pohlman, Fillmore County Public Health

This session will include three speakers sharing innovative approaches to traffic safety that have a direct positive impact on traffic safety behavior. Speakers will highlight novel approaches, partnerships, and resources surrounding impaired driving, child passenger safety, teen drivers, cannabinoids, and more. Let’s not reinvent the wheel—this session will provide you with new information and ideas for your community! All E’s are welcome and encouraged to attend.

Moderator

Mike Hanson, Minnesota TZD Program Co-chair, and Director, Office of Traffic Safety, Minnesota Department of Public Safety

Speaker

Jermaine Galloway, Tall Cop Says Stop

Back by popular demand, Jermaine Galloway will take a deep dive into recent drug trends including gas station heroin, kratom, over-the-counter drugs, and drugs of abuse that are found in local stores, including those in rural counties.

Moderator

Joe Gustafson, Washington County Public Works

Speakers

Ken Johnson, Office of Traffic Engineering, Minnesota Department of Transportation
Joe Devore, KLJ Engineering
Vic Lund, St. Louis County

One of the most effective strategies to improve the safety of intersections is to reduce vehicle conflict points that typically result in serious crashes such as angle conflict points. In this session, Vic Lund will present on the practical application of the Safe System Approach to intersection design and how site-specific crash modification factors are needed. Joe Devore will present on how vehicle conflict points can be evaluated in a more detailed way by using the Federal Highway Administration’s modeling tools, as well as how the evaluation of vehicle conflict points can lead to innovative and effective safety solutions.

Moderator

Bill Lemons, Traffic Safety Resource Prosecutor, Minnesota County Attorneys Association, and Office of Traffic Safety, Minnesota Department of Public Safety

Speakers

David Bernstein, Minneapolis City Attorney’s Office
Amy Tripp-Steiner, Minneapolis City Attorney’s Office

This session will cover legislative changes that affect DWI and traffic safety laws and review important court decisions from the last year. Attendees will get a preview of the next legislative session, potential legislative initiatives, and past legislative efforts. The panel will discuss other court-related matters, changes to Minnesota’s marijuana law, and challenges with enforcing marijuana-impaired cases.

Moderator

Stephanie Malinoff, Center for Transportation Studies, University of Minnesota

Speaker

Chuck DeWeese, Responsibility.org

There is no silver bullet to eliminate alcohol-related and drugged-driving crashes from our roadways. Rather, it requires a comprehensive approach that involves partnerships, training, strong laws, effective technology, and a willingness to try new approaches. You will leave this session with a list of resources to assist you in your daily activities and a checklist to work from to ensure you are trying everything to end impaired driving tragedies on Minnesota roadways.

Moderator

Jasmine Wangen, Altru Health System

Speaker

Jennifer Booge, National Digital Car Seat Check Form

With over 100,000 recorded seat checks and counting, the National Digital Car Seat Check Form (NDCF) is your source for CPS use and misuse data. Explore ways in which you can use the NDCF data to improve your program. Approved for 1.0 CPS CEU credits.

Moderator

Nick White, Office of Traffic Safety, Minnesota Department of Public Safety

Speakers

Deputy Jamie Meyer, Mower County Sheriff’s Office
Sgt. Tyler Milless, Minnesota State Patrol
Vanessa Perez, Bureau of Criminal Apprehension, Minnesota Department of Public Safety

This session will walk an officer through the entire DWI process, from roadside observations to how biological samples are tested at the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension. Attendees will learn how road officers and the BCA can work together to ensure a DWI case is properly completed. In addition, the attendee will learn how to interpret the BCA report.

Moderator

Susan Johnson, Northwest TZD Regional Coordinator

Speakers

Rosaline Groven, Key Club, Lincoln High School
Stacey Leake, Key Club, Lincoln High School
Students from Lincoln and Goodridge High Schools Teen TZD Key Clubs

This session will share and discuss how two schools in Pennington County work together with engineering, education, enforcement, EMS, and mental health specialists around the region to create the Teen TZD (TTZD) Conference. Their goal is educating and guiding teens to make better choices in and outside of a vehicle to reduce the two top killers of teens—car crashes and suicide. Panelists will talk about the TTZD conference, session topics, and the positive data and information they have been gathering from surveys.

Moderator

Allison Nicolson, BSc, CTRS, CPSI, Essentia Health

Speakers

Allison Nicolson, BSc, CTRS, CPSI, Essentia Health
Kaitlin Schaumburg, Essentia Health
Melissa Harry, PhD, MSW, LGSW, Essentia Institute of Rural Health
Kristin Colling, MD, Essentia Health

St. Louis County is a “Deadliest 13” county in Minnesota because of impaired driving. The northeastern Minnesota JOYRIDE program, established in 2014 in southern St Louis and Carlton counties, provides reduced-cost taxi rides for intoxicated patrons. This session’s speakers will share the JOYRIDE model, its impact on DWI arrests and crashes, and advice on developing a program for improving awareness and public safety in rural Minnesota. Additionally, speakers will review motor vehicle and recreation vehicle crashes treated at Saint Mary’s Medical Center between 2016 and 2020. While rates of motor vehicle and motorcycle crashes were relatively stable or decreased slightly over that time period, rates of ATV and snowmobile crashes increased significantly. Use of safety equipment significantly decreased the mortality rates, and speakers will discuss risk factors for mortality and factors that may play into safety equipment use.

Moderator

Kristine Hernandez, Statewide Minnesota TZD Program Manager

Speakers

Dave Boxum, Office of Communications, Minnesota Department of Public Safety
Lisa Kons, Minnesota Safety Council and the Minnesota Network of Employers for Traffic Safety
Karen Sprattler, Sprattler Group

Learn about a new report from the Governors Highway Safety Association, Responsibility.org, and the National Alliance to Stop Impaired Driving—Cannabis Consumers and Safe Driving: Responsible Use Messaging. This report provides guidance on how we all can better communicate with cannabis consumers about safe driving and offers recommendations about the types of messages that do and don’t work. Then hear how state and agency communications professionals are tailoring their messaging. Finally, we’ll discuss how employers might adapt to employees using legal cannabis and answer “ What are the seven ‘safety sensitive positions’ that are subject to closer scrutiny?”

Moderator

Kelly Corbin, Office of Transit and Active Transportation, Minnesota Department of Transportation

Speakers

Chris Brown, AICP, SRF Consulting
Kelly Corbin, Office of Transit and Active Transportation, Minnesota Department of Transportation
Will Wlizlo, Office of Transit and Active Transportation, Minnesota Department of Transportation

MnDOT’s Office of Transit and Active Transportation has new resources and funding to protect vulnerable road users. Learn about opportunities for TZD stakeholders to collaborate with cities, counties, school districts, and MnDOT in offering pedestrian and bicycle safety education and creating transportation action plans that address local concerns. Increasing safety for people walking, biking, and rolling will require thoughtful planning, robust education, sharp evaluation, and dignified active transportation infrastructure. This session will provide more details on understanding the new legislative requirement for bicycle and pedestrian education in all Minnesota schools; finding funding for active transportation planning at a city, county, or school district level; a case study using data to identify high-priority safety improvement areas; and accessing infrastructure funding and implementing demonstration projects.

Moderator

Frank Scherf, Office of Traffic Safety, Minnesota Department of Public Safety

Speakers

Mike Asleson, Bureau of Criminal Apprehension, Minnesota Department of Public Safety
Brent Nelson, Bureau of Criminal Apprehension, Minnesota Department of Public Safety
Shauna Richardson, Bureau of Criminal Apprehension, Minnesota Department of Public Safety

Learn about the latest in drug use and testing, preview the DMT replacement project, see what’s new with eCharging, and gain useful tips to ensure you are using eCharging to its maximum potential.

Moderator

Annette Larson, South Central TZD Regional Coordinator

Speaker

Joan Somes, MN Emergency Nurses Association

Each day we grow older. Our bodies age physically and cognitively. These normal changes can affect driving skills and safety, especially in the baby boomer and older generations (age 57+). Those over age 65 are the fastest-growing portion of Minnesota’s population. They are also entering their most vulnerable time when driving. This session will explore changes that occur with aging, signs indicating these changes are happening—especially related to driving safety—and actions that can be taken to mitigate these changes. Each TZD “E” needs to be aware of these changes so they can plan for additional methods of keeping seniors mobile and safe on the roads.

Moderator

Allison Nicolson, Essentia Health

Speaker

Vera Fullaway, Safe Traffic System Inc. 

Learn current information about child passengers in school buses, ambulances, and RVs—including what technicians should know about FMVSS 213 for improved curbside education with parents and caregivers. Approved for 1.5 CPS CEU credits.

Moderator

Bill Lemons, Traffic Safety Resource Prosecutor, Minnesota County Attorneys Association, and Office of Traffic Safety, Minnesota Department of Public Safety

Speakers

David Bernstein, Minneapolis City Attorney’s Office
Matthew Hartung, Minneapolis City Attorney’s Office
Lt. Andrew Martinek, Minnesota State Patrol

This presentation will teach law enforcement and prosecutors how to effectively prove their DWI cases in court, including both alcohol and drug-related impairment. DWIs involving impairment by cannabis will specifically be addressed.

Moderator

Lt. Gabe Cornish, Minnesota State Patrol

Speaker

Randy Stocker, Speaker and Author of Hugs Help: Our Story of Tragic Loss, Survival, and Helping Others

Loss and grief have widespread impact on personal well-being, workplace engagement, relationships, and more. Grieving is a dynamic and ever-changing process for both the griever and the supporter. Gain some practical insight on how best to help while boosting your own resilience when those situations arise.

Moderator

Katy Kressin, West Central TZD Regional Coordinator

Speaker

Kaitlyn Roach, Life Link III

Learn important skills such as how to use a tourniquet and pack a wound—skills that will better prepare you to respond to a traumatic injury involving severe bleeding. This will be a beneficial session regardless of whether you have previously taken a Stop the Bleed class. These skills save lives!

Moderator

Nick White, Office of Traffic Safety, Minnesota Department of Public Safety

Speakers

Cleven Duncan, Alcohol and Gambling Enforcement, Minnesota Department of Public Safety
Shawn Hansen, Alcohol and Gambling Enforcement, Minnesota Department of Public Safety

Long-term trends show that Minnesotans understand that alcohol and driving don't mix, but in recent years, DWI’s have been increasing. This presentation will look at addressing the alcohol-impaired driving issue with a proactive approach through education at the retail level of the alcohol industry.

Speakers

Col. Matt Langer, TZD Leadership, and Chief, Minnesota State Patrol, Minnesota Department of Public Safety
Dylan Ferguson, Minnesota Emergency Medical Services Regulatory Board

Speaker

Dia Gainor, Executive Director, National Association of State EMS Officials

Post-crash care is one of the most novel aspects of the Safe System Approach—and is a new domain for the highway safety and transportation community to embrace. A National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine report indicates that 40 percent of crash fatalities were still alive when first responders arrived. So what can be done to improve 911, EMS, and trauma systems to prevent these deaths in the post-crash phase? This session will provide an overview of the components critical to survival when severely injured people—the most vulnerable transportation system users—are appropriately resourced in well-designed systems. These 911 and EMS considerations reinforce the statement in the National Roadway Safety Strategy: “Our responsibility does not end when a crash occurs…caring for people injured in a crash to prevent their injuries from becoming fatal is just as critical.”

Speakers

Saumya Jain, Accessibility Observatory, Center for Transportation Studies, University of Minnesota
Eric Lind, Accessibility Observatory, Center for Transportation Studies, University of Minnesota
Hannah Prichard, Office of Transit and Active Transportation, Minnesota Department of Transportation

Investments in low-stress bicycle facilities (off-road, protected, and separated lanes) can allow riders to access more destinations in a given travel time. Research has identified the gap between what cyclists can reach using comfortable, safer bikeways and what might be available if the infrastructure covered more of the local street network. Many factors influence the outcome of driver-pedestrian interactions and driver yield rates, including traffic volume, vehicle speed, and the built environment, among others. For this research, pedestrian-driver interactions were observed to help identify the factors present at an intersection that led to higher driver yield rates.

Moderator

Kat Vue, Office of Traffic Safety, Minnesota Department of Public Safety

Speakers

Joe Albert, Minnesota Department of Natural Resources
Sheryl Cummings, Minnesota Operation Lifesaver
Lisa Kons, Minnesota Safety Council and the Minnesota Network of Employers for Traffic Safety
Gene LaDoucer, AAA–The Auto Club Group                       

Hear from roadway safety professionals from across Minnesota about influential campaigns used to spread roadway safety messages that emphasize good driving behaviors. This session will feature the “Impaired is Impaired” campaign, AAA’s “Move Over for Me” campaign, Minnesota Operation Lifesaver’s messages to professional drivers about rail safety, and a collaboration between the Minnesota DNR and TZD on ATV safety. Session attendees will learn about successful partnerships and roadway safety campaigns recently employed in Minnesota.

Moderator

Stephanie Malinoff, Center for Transportation Studies, University of Minnesota

Speakers

Paul Aasen, Minnesota Safety Council
Mike Hanson, Minnesota TZD Program Co-Chair and Director, Office of Traffic Safety, Minnesota Department of Public Safety
Brian Sorenson, Minnesota TZD Program Co-Chair and State Traffic Engineer, Office of Traffic Engineering, Minnesota Department of Transportation

The 2023 Minnesota legislative session ended with the passage of a number of policy and funding changes intended to improve transportation safety in Minnesota in the coming years. Legislation was passed to address high-risk rural roads, law enforcement training for impairment, sober cab rides, data analytics, and work zone safety as well as to create an Advisory Council for Traffic Safety. What do these changes mean for you in your daily work and for Minnesota TZD? Join us in this session as we discuss implementation of this important legislation.

Moderator

Aimee Eggen, Norman County Public Health

Speakers

Daniella Brown, UPPAbaby
Vera Fullaway, Safe Traffic System Inc.
Tony Jerisha, Kids Embrace
Bob Wall, Nuna Baby Essentials Inc.

Participating car seat manufacturers will each describe features and benefits for convenience, comfort, correct use, energy management, and injury reduction. Speakers will demonstrate car seat use with audience members as well. Approved for 1.0 CPS CEU credits.

Moderator

Becky Putzke, Office of Traffic Safety, Minnesota Department of Public Safety

Speakers

Sgt. Adam Moore, South Lake Minnetonka Police Department
Officer Susie Schultz, Orono Police Department

Officers will walk through a fatal crash involving an impaired driver and the twists and turns that can happen when dealing with a fatal crash. This session, which will also cover what steps officers need to follow through on for a conviction, is designed to help and motivate officers in their impaired driving enforcement.

Moderator

Shannon Grabow, Office of Traffic Safety, Minnesota Department of Public Safety

Speakers 

Sgt. Tyler Abrahamson, Fridley Police Department
Lt. John Fritz, Minnesota State Patrol
Amy Tripp-Steiner, Minneapolis City Attorney’s Office
Lt. Tyler Uthe, Minnesota State Patrol

Street racing enforcement efforts are most effective when they focus on collaborative, all-encompassing, and strategic plans. Intelligence-based, supervisory-led enforcement operations target illegal street racing, roadway takeovers, and drifting. This session will provide examples of case studies with successful outcomes. A glimpse into this underground culture, the operations used, investigative best practices, and challenges encountered will be provided.

Moderator

Julie Philbrook, Hennepin Healthcare

Speaker

Charles Sloan III, Hennepin EMS         

Using film footage of actual ambulance crashes, a paramedic will discuss which actions by the first responders may have put them at higher risk of a crash and changes that have since been Implemented. He will also assess the danger EMS equipment may pose in the event of a crash and how that danger can be minimized.

Moderator

Nicole Bitzan, SRF Consulting Grou

Speakers

Abdullahi Abdulle, Office of Transportation System Management, Minnesota Department of Transportation
Tim Burkhardt, Alliant Engineering, Inc.
Derek Leuer, Office of Traffic Engineering, Minnesota Department of Transportation

This rapid-fire session will provide quick overviews of recent safety evaluations for flashing yellow arrows, reduced-conflict intersections, high-tension cable barriers, rectangular rapid-flashing beacons, pedestrians at roundabouts, school-zone speed limits, and high-friction surface treatments. Presenters will share the findings of these evaluations and the impacts these features are having on crashes on Minnesota roadways.

Moderator

Renae Kuehl, SRF Consulting

Speakers

John Dostart, City of Altoona, Iowa
Devin Moore, Kimley-Horn
David Peterson, City of St. Paul
Kristi Sebastian, Minnesota Division, Federal Highway Administration    

With a national and Minnesota increase in fatal and serious injury crashes, there is a greater need for systemwide assessment of the transportation system at the local level to improve roadway safety.  The Safe Streets for All (SS4A) program, established through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL), provides $5 billion in funding over five years (2022-2026) in grants for safety planning and implementation of projects for regional, local, and tribal Community initiatives.  This program supports the U.S. Department of Transportation's National Roadway Safety Strategy and TZD’s goal of zero roadway deaths. This session will discuss the Safe Streets and Roads Grant programs and experiences in developing a safety plan for both a large city and a small community.

Moderator

Lisa Kons, Minnesota Safety Council and the Minnesota Network of Employers for Traffic Safety

Speakers

Allison Hawley, Office of Traffic Safety, Minnesota Department of Public Safety
Lisa Kons, Minnesota Safety Council and the Minnesota Network of Employers for Traffic Safety
Jessica Schleck, Southeast TZD Regional Coordinator

In April of 2021, the Minnesota Speed Action Team came to fruition. Over the past two years this team has focused on strategies, activities, and tactics to curb the speed epidemic. This session will review outcomes of campaigns and subcommittees specifically developed by the team as well as discuss preliminary findings of the Minnesota Speed Behavior Research Study. This includes an initial analysis of the various motivations and circumstances contributing to risky driving behaviors and effective ways to reach risky drivers through traffic safety messaging.

Moderator

Kristen Oster, Office of Traffic Safety, Minnesota Department of Public Safety

Speakers

Jenifer Doyle, First Student
Rahya Geisler, Northeast TZD Regional Coordinator
Amy Howe
Lieutenant Brian Reu, Minneapolis State Patrol

School bus stop-arm cameras have been installed in school buses across the state to keep students safe as they travel to and from school. Hear an overview of the program and how these cameras are working as a great prevention tool. The program coordinator will discuss citations issued in the state before the program got started, comparing that to how things changed after cameras were installed. You’ll learn what school bus drivers had to do before cameras were readily available in order to report a stop-arm violator, review what is captured now, and hear about the relationships fostered by the program between bus companies and law enforcement.

Moderator

Julie Philbrook, Hennepin Healthcare

Speaker

Andrew Waititu Kiragu, MD, FAAP, FCCM, Children's Minnesota

Dr. Kiragu will walk through a case presentation on the injury, what happened, and why. He will also discuss what could have potentially decreased the severity of these injuries.

Moderator

Duane Siedschlag, Office of Traffic Safety, Minnesota Department of Public Safety

Speakers

Deputy Alex Graham, Ramsey County Sheriff’s Office
Sgt. Tyler Milless, Minnesota State Patrol

Participants will learn about the recreational cannabis law in Minnesota and take a deep dive into cannabis, legislation, and field sobriety testing related to impairment. Participants will be able to ask questions and partake in an open discussion about all things cannabis.

 Moderator

Scott McConkey, Office of Traffic Safety, Minnesota Department of Public Safety

Speaker

Sheriff Scott Rose, Dodge County Sheriff’s Office and Officer Down Memorial Podcast
Mark Griffith, South Central Minnesota Critical Incident Stress Management (CISM) Team and Blue Earth and Nicollet Counties Safe Roads Coalition
Lisa Gahler, South Central Minnesota Critical Incident Stress Management (CISM) Team

In remembering our fallen, we also honor the service and sacrifice made by the men and women currently serving our communities. How can officers stay motivated and deal with the grief and stress that comes with the profession, including personal loss? This session will also share options and programs to help law enforcement officers and first responders deal with critical incidents.

Moderator

Katy Kressin, West Central TZD Regional Coordinator

Speaker

Kaitlyn Roach, Life Link III

Find out why field triage skills are important for public safety in any size community and leave feeling confident that you could implement the principles!

Moderator

Matt Knight, SRF Consulting Group

Speakers

Maxwell Moreland, Office of Traffic Engineering, Minnesota Department of Transportation
Mark Wagner, Office of Traffic Engineering, Minnesota Department of Transportation

This session will cover recent safety evaluations conducted for sinusoidal rumble strips, changing speed limits from 55 to 60 mph, reflective signal backplates, and more, including updates on evaluations of J-turns and pedestrians at roundabouts. This presentation will also review recent transportation research syntheses on speed enforcement and traffic safety related to cannabis.