Full Notification

November 7, 2014

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT: Sergeant James Buckley
[email protected]
805-583-6223

SIMI VALLEY POLICE DEPARTMENT RECEIVES GRANT FOR
SPECIAL TRAFFIC ENFORCEMENT AND CRASH PREVENTION

The Simi Valley Police Department has been awarded a $34,000 grant from the California Office of Traffic Safety (OTS) for a year-long program of special enforcements and public awareness efforts to prevent traffic related deaths and injuries. The Simi Valley Police Department will use the funding as part of the City’s ongoing commitment to keep our roadways safe and improve the quality of life through both enforcement and education.

“In support of the Office of Traffic Safety’s mission to reduce DUI and Distracted Driver related fatalities, and in furtherance of our Departments commitment to public safety, it is with great thanks that the Simi Valley Police Department accepts this grant funding,” said Chief Mitch McCann. “The investment made by the OTS will greatly enhance the Simi Valley Police Department’s ability to enforce its zero tolerance stance on DUI and Distracted Drivers.”

After falling dramatically between 2006 and 2010, the number of persons killed and injured in traffic collisions saw slight increases in 2011 and 2012. Particularly worrisome are recent increases in pedestrian and motorcycle fatalities and the dangers of distracting technologies. This grant funding will provide opportunities to combat these and other devastating problems such as drunk and drugged driving and speeding.

“California’s roadways are still among the safest in the nation,” said OTS Director Rhonda Craft. “But to meet future mobility, safety, and sustainability objectives, we must create safer roadways for all users. The Simi Valley Police Department will be using these and other resources to reach the vision we all share – Toward zero deaths, every 1 counts.”

Activities that the grant will fund include:
• DUI checkpoints
• DUI saturation patrols
• Bicycle and motorcycle safety enforcement
• Distracted driving enforcement
• Warrant service operations targeting multiple DUI offenders
• Specialized DUI and drugged driving training such as Standardized Field Sobriety Testing (SFST), Advanced Roadside Impaired Driving Enforcement (ARIDE), and Drug Recognition Evaluator (DRE)

Funding for this program is from the California Office of Traffic Safety through the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
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