Fostering Local Partnerships to Address Traffic Safety Concerns at National Battlefields 

Date and Time: 8/31/2022
Location: Aspen

Presenter: Dan Malsom, Transportation Operations and Safety Engineer, Kimley-Horn & Associates, Inc.

  

 

 

PRESENTATION DESCRIPTION

National Battlefields are National Park Service (NPS) sites that commemorate battles “fought on American soil during the armed conflicts that shaped the growth and development of the United States” (American Battlefield Protection Act of 1996). While the battles occurred long ago, many National Battlefields did not become part of the NPS system until the mid-20th century or later. As a result, NPS often must manage sites crisscrossed with transportation infrastructure that was already in place when NPS acquired the property. Responding to an enhanced focus on transportation safety for federal lands, some NPS sites have conducted traffic and safety studies to better understand how their area transportation network could be modified to improve safety, traffic operations, and the general visitor experience. Parks including Monocacy National Battlefield (in Maryland), Stones River National Battlefield (in Tennessee), Fredericksburg & Spotsylvania National Military Park (in Virginia), and Wilsons Creek National Battlefield (in Missouri) have all recently conducted such studies. In each case, the National Battlefields have partnered with local agencies to add value to the study process. These partnerships have allowed for data and experience sharing, proper vetting of recommended improvements, identification of the proper partner agency staff to involve in future implementation efforts, and a better understanding among partners of how priorities and missions differ between agencies and where common ground might exist in identifying improvements. Where differences of opinion have persisted regarding recommended improvements, the studies have provided an opportunity to document engineering findings alongside contextual discussion that weighs the merits and drawbacks of various improvement options.

SPEAKER BIOGRAPHY

Dan Malsom, P.E., RSP1, is a transportation planner and engineer at Kimley-Horn & Associates in Austin, Texas. He has spent his career supporting federal lands management agencies with road safety assessments, traffic operations studies, and conceptual design services related to traffic safety improvements. He also supports local and state agencies with data visualization and transportation systems management and operations (TSMO) planning efforts. Dan currently serves as Secretary and Young Member Representative on the TRB Standing Committee for Transportation Needs of National Parks and Public Lands. He received his Bachelors of Science degree in Civil and Environmental Engineering from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and is an avid backpacker and Ultimate frisbee player.