MONTGOMERY— Gov. Kay Ivey has awarded grants totaling $780,483 to support efforts to make roads in a 15-county region in southwest Alabama safer by preventing injuries and fatalities.
The funds will support the Southwest Alabama Highway Safety Office which supports the efforts of local law enforcement agencies to provide increased traffic enforcement, checkpoints and saturation patrols during busy travel periods such as the upcoming Labor Day weekend. The extra enforcement will cover impaired driving and excessive speed “Hotspots” as identified by the University of Alabama’s Center for Advanced Public Safety. Funds will also be used to cover overtime for officers during the national “Click It or Ticket” and “Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over” campaigns and for educational materials related to seatbelt safety.
“Reckless or intoxicated drivers present a danger to everyone on Alabama’s roads,” Ivey said. “These grants help put more officers and deputies on patrol during busy travel periods to keep people safe by removing dangerous drivers from Alabama roads and enforcing traffic laws.”
The counties covered by the Southwest Alabama Highway Safety Office are Baldwin, Choctaw, Clarke, Conecuh, Dallas, Escambia, Greene, Hale, Marengo, Mobile, Monroe, Perry, Sumter, Washington and Wilcox.
The Mobile County Commission serves as the fiscal agent for the Highway Safety Office.
The Alabama Department of Economic and Community Affairs is administering the grants from funds made available to the state by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
“I join Gov. Ivey in her commitment to providing support and resources to the law enforcement officers who serve and protect us every day,” ADECA Director Kenneth Boswell said. “The partnership between ADECA and the highway safety offices across the state plays an important role in making Alabama roads safer for us all.”
ADECA manages a wide array of programs that support law enforcement and traffic safety, workforce development, energy conservation, water resource management, economic development and recreation.
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Contact: Russell Sellers, Mike Presley