What happens when the safety goals for now and the goals for the future are in conflict? A people-focused Safe System approach considers vulnerabilities today and in the future. Recently adopted as a priority by agencies such as FHWA, Caltrans, the City of Philadelphia, and the Washington State Department of Transportation, safe system is a traffic safety framework emphasizing shared responsibility and a proactive approach where death and serious injury are recognized as unacceptable costs of travel on our roads.