From a press release:
“Hundreds of people are expected at the National Mall on Sunday, November 15, to commemorate World Day of Remembrance for Road Traffic Victims and the fifth annual Ride for Your Life bike ride to remember victims of traffic violence and push for measures to improve roadway safety.
This will be the nation’s largest of more than 80 held across the country on WDoR.
“Traffic violence is entirely preventable. Other countries have demonstrated this. So let’s apply the American can-do attitude and bring these numbers down,” said Ride for Your Life Founder Dan Langenkamp, who created the organization after his wife, Sarah, was killed by an inattentive truck driver while she was riding her bike home from her children’s elementary school in Bethesda in 2022.
Participants will urge leaders to “invest in safety, not speed,” the event’s 2026 theme, at a rally which will include Maryland Representative Jamie Raskin and Marisa Jones, executive director of the Safe Routes Partnership.
Dangerous speeds are a factor in one-third of U.S. traffic deaths, and American roadways are far more dangerous than in past decades–especially for those who are not inside a motor vehicle.
Nearly 38,000 people were killed in traffic crashes in 2025 in the United States, a 12% decline from 2024, due largely to policy and infrastructure investments that have improved the safety of some vehicles and roadways.
However, about 9,200 pedestrians and cyclists were killed on U.S. roadways in 2024, a 65% increase since 2010, largely due to larger, boxier cars, increased levels of distraction, and other factors.
Traffic crashes remain a leading cause of death in America, particularly among youth. The U.S. has the highest traffic death rate of 29 high-income countries.
Organizers are putting forward a range of demands for elected leaders in the region:
-Washington, DC: That mayor-elect Janeese Lewis George prioritize safety improvements near schools including by making every unsignalized intersection next to a school an all-way stop before the 2027-2028 school year.
-Virginia: That the legislature amend the state’s “contributory negligence” rule, which severely limits a crash victim’s ability to claim any damages in civil procedures.
-Maryland: That the General Assembly pass a law allowing county authorities to use automatic speed enforcement cameras in residential districts.
-U.S. Congress: That Congress prioritize safety in its upcoming five-year transportation bill via a range of funding changes, vehicle technology improvements, and enhancements to roadway design and education programs.
Read the coalition’s full list of demands here.
Organizations involved in the event include Ride for Your Life, Families for Safe Streets (chapters in DC, Maryland, and Virginia), Hill Family Biking, DC Bike Party, the Washington Area Bicyclist Association, Bike Maryland, Vision Zero Network, and the League of American Bicyclists.
WHAT:
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Ride for Your Life: 6-mile slow ride and rally.
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Families for Safe Streets Community Memorial Creation
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Rally
WHERE: Start, memorial and rally: National Mall at 4th St NW (near Madison Dr NW)
WHEN: Sunday, Nov 15, 2026