MONTGOMERY– Gov. Robert Bentley has awarded a $139,796 grant to collect and evaluate traffic safety data as part of the annual “Click It or Ticket” seat belt enforcement campaign.
The grant to the University of Alabama’s Center for Advanced Public Safety will fund research and evaluation of seat belt and child restraint use in Alabama. Surveys are conducted before and after the enforcement campaign which occurs near the Memorial Day holiday each year. Last year’s survey found that 93 percent of Alabamians were wearing their seat belts during the campaign.
“Wearing a seat belt can literally be the difference between life and death when a crash occurs, and the data collected by the Center for Advanced Public Safety each year provides this information,” Bentley said. “I commend the center for all that they do to gather and provide evidence that helps make Alabama roadways safer.”
The center collects a myriad of traffic safety data and statistics and has been instrumental in developing tools used by law enforcement officers statewide such as electronic citation and crash reporting software.
The Alabama Department of Economic and Community Affairs is administering the grant from funds made available by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
“ADECA’s partnership with the Center for Advanced Public Safety helps collect and analyze valuable traffic-safety data and statistics from all areas of the state,” ADECA Director Jim Byard Jr. said. “This information helps identify trends in seat-belt use and alcohol-related and distracted driving crashes and helps law enforcement agencies pinpoint problem areas in their jurisdictions.”
ADECA manages a wide range of programs that support law enforcement, economic development, energy conservation, water resource management and recreation.
Bentley notified Cynthia Hope, the University of Alabama’s director of sponsored programs, that the grant had been approved.
Click here to view more information about the center’s “Click It or Ticket” data collection.
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Contact: Josh Carples; Mike Presley