The District Department of Transportation (DDOT) employs over 200 safety techs, also known as crossing guards. These safety techs help children and other pedestrians safely navigate streets near schools. The role is demanding and requires physical and mental stamina. When safety techs leave, DDOT needs to manage staff shortages, which can put pedestrians at risk. Yet, many safety techs have remained in their positions for five years or more. This long tenure in a part-time and seasonal job demonstrates deep commitment to their communities. The Lab and DDOT, in partnership with the George Washington University Corcoran School of Art & Design, are learning from long-tenured safety techs to develop solutions to strengthen and retain this essential workforce.
Safety tech experience map. (Photo Credit: David Andrews for DDOT)
Why is this issue important in DC?
Safety techs guide students and other pedestrians and promote safety. They also report unsafe driver behavior and hazardous street conditions to inform traffic calming efforts and longer-term safety planning. DDOT prioritizes high-risk intersections near schools for safety-tech coverage. Intersection crash history, pedestrian volumes, and equity considerations, like whether a neighborhood has been historically underserved or experienced disinvestment, inform where safety techs work. When staffing gaps occur, critical crossings can go unprotected and pedestrians, who already account for over one-third of traffic fatalities in DC, are at greater risk.1
What are we doing?
We are partnering with the Corcoran School’s Engagement Lab to understand the day-to-day experience of safety techs and identify opportunities to strengthen the workforce.
The students have observed safety techs at their posts in different wards, interviewed DDOT staff, and mapped their insights. They also led workshops with safety techs, community members, and school representatives to further explore the safety tech job experience and school zone dynamics.
What have we learned?
The students synthesized insights from their research and developed a set of design strategy recommendations. These recommendations outline a path for addressing safety tech retention (check out their presentations). DDOT selected proposals to prototype and test. Additional findings are expected in 2026.
What comes next?
Solutions developed through this research will complement other efforts to improve safety tech recruitment, retention and attendance. DDOT is also implementing a buddy system for new hires, a one-day onboarding event to speed up hiring, and opportunities that give safety techs extra paid hours while school is out.
What happened behind the scenes?
DDOT surveyed safety techs about their job satisfaction. Nearly half said that giving back to their community is why they’ve stayed in their jobs. More than 75% rated their assigned school and the people as the things they like most about their current post.
1 Pedestrian Safety | Vision Zero DC. Accessed December 2025.