WalkWise Public Safety Outreach

About Project

A pedestrian fatality along a high-speed stretch of U.S. 92 in Volusia County, Fla., revealed a difficult public safety challenge: Many of the people most at risk of being struck by vehicles — individuals experiencing homelessness and those recently released from incarceration — are also the least likely to receive traditional safety messaging. Without consistent access to media, smartphones, or digital platforms, these vulnerable populations are largely unreachable through conventional communications campaigns.
The WalkWise pedestrian safety program was created to close that gap through a human-centered approach to public safety education. Developed in close collaboration with Global-5 client Florida Department of Transportation’s District Five Safety Office, WalkWise delivers practical pedestrian and bicycle safety education directly to shelters, correctional facilities, and community organizations serving these vulnerable populations.
The key insight behind WalkWise was that individuals disconnected from traditional media channels respond more effectively to trusted, face-to-face engagement that respects their lived experiences and encourages open dialogue.
At the heart of the program is a 20-minute interactive presentation designed to empower participants with simple actions that can significantly improve their safety when walking, bicycling, or waiting for transit along high-speed roadways. Through facilitated discussion and real-world examples, participants learn how visibility, awareness, and small behavioral changes — such as wearing reflective clothing or using bicycle lights — can dramatically increase their safety. The very notion that they have the power to influence their own safety is frequently a revelation to participants.
Because many WalkWise venues restrict audiovisual equipment or smartphone use, the program was intentionally designed for direct interaction rather than digital engagement, using printed materials, facilitated discussion, and hands-on demonstrations.
Participants also receive safety kits containing reflective vests, bicycle lights, and other visibility tools, enabling them to immediately apply what they have learned in their daily travel. Since launch, WalkWise presenters have delivered 28 educational sessions reaching 714 participants and distributed 1,457 safety kits and 889 bicycle lights to individuals who rely on walking and bicycling along this high-speed corridor.
WalkWise program advisors included law enforcement, transit providers, transportation planners, university transportation-safety programs, and organizations serving vulnerable populations. The result is an initiative that demonstrates how targeted, community-based engagement can reach audiences often overlooked by traditional outreach efforts.
WalkWise recently released a free, publicly available adoption toolkit that includes a 20-minute presentation, flyer, flash cards, pocket cards, and fact sheet. This important, caring program now offers communities a replicable model for improving pedestrian safety among vulnerable road users who too often remain invisible to traditional safety campaigns.