A Few Things You Should Know About Highway Safety

1. A Few Things You Should Know About Highway Safety Chris Luebbert Commercial Motor Vehicle Program Manager MoDOT – Traffic and Highway Safety Division

2. Behavioral Efforts The primary goal of the Highway Safety Office is to reduce fatal and serious injury crashes on Missouri roadways. We primarily focus on two key elements to change driver behavior: - Education - Enforcement

3. Why Education and Enforcement? • One of the most effective countermeasures in reducing highway traffic fatalities is creating general deterrence through High Visibility Enforcement (HVE). When the perceived risk of getting caught by law enforcement goes up, the likelihood that people will engage in unsafe driving behaviors goes down.

4. How do we do what we do? • The Traffic and Highway Safety Office receives grant funds from NHTSA (and other funding sources) • These funds are used to provide grants to state, regional and local partners for crash reduction programs • Ten Highway Safety staff oversee these programs

5. Child Passenger Safety • Usage rate 91% (2009) • 927 CPS Technicians, 36 CPS Instructors • Approximately 200 CPS Tech’s trained each year • Provided child safety seats to low income families • Recently hosted first Hispanic CPS course • “Operation Kids” six-hour informational course for law enforcement, EMT’s, etc.

6. Young Drivers / Teens • One of our most vulnerable age groups • Very challenging to reach • Seatbelt usage rate: 66% • Primary Seat Belt Law (under GDL program)

7. Young Drivers / Teens • Battle of the Belt • High school seatbelt competition • Team Spirit • a program designed to empower youth to take an active role in promoting safe driving habits • Docu-Dramas • “Every 15 Minutes” • ThinkFirst • Safe Communities • MO Safe and Sober

8. Impaired Driving:How do we reduce these crashes? • Sobriety Checkpoints - Why? • DWI/Multi-Agency Task Forces • Ignition Interlock Devices • Statewide DWI campaigns • Full Time DWI Enforcement Units

9. Sobriety Checkpoints • The purpose of sobriety checkpoints is to “deter” driving after drinking by increasing the perceived risk of arrest • Checkpoints should be highly visible, publicized extensively, and conducted regularly • Deterrence versus Apprehension: “…can make more DWI arrests with a saturation patrol/DWI wolfpack.”

10. Sobriety Checkpoints

11. DWI Task Forces Allows agencies to pool resources and expand coverage (especially manpower and equipment) • SWMO DWI Task Force (Joplin area) • NWMO DWI Task Force (St. Joseph area) • Jackson County Traffic Safety Task Force • Cass County STEP (DWI Task Force) • Clay/Platte County DWI Task Force • St. Louis Regional Traffic Safety Council • St. Charles County DWI Task Force • Greene County/Springfield Area • Southeast agencies • Others in development

12. Impaired Driving:Ignition Interlock Devices • Mandatory for repeat offenders (but judge can order for first time DWI offenders) • Approximately 6800 currently installed in Missouri • Be watchful: Honking car and/or flashing lights could be an indicator

13. Impaired Driving:Full Time DWI Units • Joplin Police Dept. • Greene County Sheriff’s Office • Boone County Sheriff’s Office • Columbia Police Dept. • Jackson County Sheriff’s Office • Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office • Franklin County Sheriff’s Office • St. Louis County Police Dept. • Creve Coeur Police Dept.

14. Occupant Protection • 2012 Seatbelt Usage Rate – 79% • Primary Safety Belt Ordinances (30 cities, 1 county) • Encourage law enforcement to take zero-tolerance approach to non-use of seatbelts • “Click It or Ticket” Campaign (May 20 – June 2, 2013) • Statewide Seatbelt Survey follows CIOT in June

15. Aggressive Drivers • Includes Speeding, Following Too Close, and Too Fast for Conditions • Provide overtime grant funding and equipment to law enforcement agencies • Focus on speeding violations, failure to yield, following too close, etc.

16. Distracted Driving • Texting and driving is illegal for drivers under 21 (tough to enforce) • Need to focus on all drivers and not only teens (AT&T Survey Results) • “Focus on the Road” Pledge 10,000 people included in drawing for a Ford Focus Thursday, May 16 KRCG and Joe Machens Ford

17. Older Drivers • Becoming a larger percentage of the driver population • Developing screening tools for medical professionals to assess fitness to drive • Working with MO Dept. of Revenue to update curriculum for DOR field offices to help identify medically unfit drivers • Looking to develop a resource card for law enforcement to use in the field

18. Motorcycles • Single versus Multi-vehicle collisions • Raising Awareness • Unlicensed challenges • Helmets and other riding gear • Impaired riders • Training Courses

19. Commercial Vehicles • FMCSA is key partner • Motor Carrier Safety Assistance Program (MCSAP) • Focus on safe vehicles and safe drivers • Law enforcement and MoDOT • Seatbelt use is a primary law for CMVs

20. Public Information/Education • Promote Highway Safety campaigns / programs • Media calls/requests/interviews • “Arrive Alive” branding/promotion • www.savemolives.com • Press events • So…much…more…

21. Law Enforcement Campaigns

22. Other areas: • Blueprint Activities!!! • Work Zone Enforcement • Traffic Records/Data Improvement • Traffic Safety Resource Prosecutor • Safe Communities Programs • Training/Academies • LETSAC, Breath Lab,