Traffic Safety Update: December 2022
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TODAY at 10am! National Holiday Season Impaired Driving High-Visibility Enforcement Kickoff - Virtual Event
Join the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) as they discuss coordinated efforts nationwide to combat alcohol- and drug-impaired driving during this holiday season. The virtual event and press conference will be held Tuesday, December 13 at 10 a.m. ET.
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NHTSA Acting Administrator Ann Carlson will be joined by:
- Dr. Kavita Babu, Chief of Division of Medical Toxicology at UMass Memorial Health;
- Colonel Melissa Zebley, Delaware State Police; and
- Vickie Brown, alcohol-impaired driving survivor.
NHTSA’s impaired-driving campaign, featuring messages of Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over, and If You Feel Different, You Drive Different—Drive High, Get a DUI, will begin on December 14 and run through January 1, 2023. Alcohol-impaired traffic fatalities have increased over the past few years, as have other dangerous driving behaviors. In addition, drug prevalence in traffic crashes has increased in recent years, as will be noted at this event with the release of a new report from NHTSA. It is more imperative than ever for NHTSA, law enforcement, and safety stakeholders to work together to address impaired driving.
Please preregister for this event and you’ll receive a confirmation email with a link to join the event via Zoom. More information is available at NHTSA.gov/Events.
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Virginia's Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over (DSOGPO) Holiday Campaign — December 14, 2022 – January 1, 2023
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Virginia DMV will be participating in National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's (NHTSA) upcoming Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over (DSOGPO) holiday campaign December 14, 2022 to January 1, 2023.
The holiday season is known for being merry and bright, but it is also the deadliest season when it comes to drunk driving. Unfortunately, every holiday season, lives are lost due to impaired driving. From December 15, 2021, through January 1, 2022, there were 333 alcohol-related crashes, 217 injuries and seven deaths on Virginia roads.
We encourage our partners to help us get out this important information out to our communities.
- NHTSA has downloadable materials on its website that educate drivers on the dangers of drugged and drunk driving.
- Our highway safety partner WRAP has the "Act Like It" campaigns available for your use:
- The 2022 Drive Sober Or Get Pulled Over campaign social media assets, including ready-to-post graphics and captions for Facebook and Twitter, are available through the WRAP toolkit: https://socialpresskit.com/2022-actlikeit-va. The campaign message is simple: If you're old enough to drink, act like it. Get a safe ride. WRAP welcomes our highway safety partners to both encourage their partners in the community to do the same as well as tag all posts with #ActLikeItVA.
- Please also visit ActLikeIt.org for more information about the campaign.
Additionally, Virginia law enforcement agencies that receive transportation safety grant funding are required to participate in the holiday DSOGP campaign. Grant-funded enforcement agencies must record citation data and enter it into TREDS, for the DSOGPO enforcement dates of December 14, 2022, through January 1, 2023. All data must be entered into TREDS by January 16, 2023. Agencies may use the attached form to help gather the correct information for TREDS. The attached does not need to be returned.
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REMINDER! Submit Your November 2022 Click It or Ticket Enforcement & Survey Data by December 16!
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If your agency participated in the November 2022 Click It or Ticket campaign, don't forget to enter your enforcement data and any pre- and post-survey results into TREDS by this Thursday, December 16. Pre- and Post-Mobilzation seat belt surveys were OPTIONAL for the November campaign; however, enforcement data is required to be submitted. In TREDS, the campaign is listed as Click It or Ticket 2022 November Mobilization.
If you have any questions, please contact John Messina at john.messina@dmv.virginia.gov
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DMV Calls for Organizations to Help Save Lives on Virginia's Roads
Highway Safety Grant Fund Applications Accepted through February 28
Grant-funded programs strive to increase seat belt use; decrease speeding; prevent drunk, drugged, drowsy or distracted driving; or promote motorcyclist, pedestrian, bicyclist, teen or senior driver safety. Objectives to measure the initiative's effectiveness are required, and funding is determined by the potential impact on these established performance objectives. Applications for programs that include Virginians of various cultures and ethnicities are encouraged. More information is available online.
An example of a grant-funded project is a local law enforcement agency provides high-visibility enforcement (HVE) of alcohol-related traffic laws, including checkpoints and saturation patrols, to combat drunk driving crashes, injuries and fatalities. The agency evaluates the crash data in its locality, including where and at what times of day the most incidents occur, and forms an HVE plan based on the data.
Approved applications will receive funding from October 1, 2023 through September 30, 2024. Applicants participate on a cost-reimbursement basis.
Interested applicants may apply between February 1 – 28, 2023, and are required to complete a grant application training course. Workshops begin in January 2023. For information about the course, guidelines for grant applications and access to the application, contact the DMV program manager in your area.
FULL NEWS RELEASE
GRANT INFORMATION & ONLINE APPLICATION
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UPCOMING TRAFFIC SAFETY TRAININGS
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SFST Instructor Development Course (SFST-IDC)
February 6 – 10, 2023
Southwest Virginia Criminal Justice Training Academy
1595 Bingham Road, Bristol, VA 24201
The SFST-IDC is designed to enable participants to develop the knowledge, skill and attitudes necessary to effectively fill roles as instructors in support of the NHTSA/IACP DWI Detection and Standardized Field Sobriety Testing (SFST) training program which targets the detection of impaired drivers. This course is designed to train instructors to effectively teach and provide effective feedback to learners.
REQUIREMENTS: Participants should be law officers who are DCJS certified General Instructors and have demonstrated proficiency in the administration of the SFST’s. They must have successfully completed the NHTSA/IACP SFST training Program. Their reason for attending this training should be motivated by:
- a desire to develop and strengthen effective presentation skills.
- a desire to develop or strengthen skills as a DWI detection and SFST instructor
- a desire to learn how to conduct interactive participant-centered training
REGISTRATION: There is no registration fee to attend. Please email Corey Anop at corey.anop@dmv.virginia.gov to register.
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Fundamentals of Crash Investigation & Reconstruction Courses
The Virginia Highway Safety Office has scheduled two Fundamentals of Crash Investigation & Reconstruction Courses for 2023. The locations and dates are:
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February 6-17, 2023, (0800-1700)
Henrico County Police Training Facility
1919 Westmoreland St
Richmond, VA 23230
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April 10-21, 2023, (0800-1700)
Crater Criminal Justice Training Academy
6130 County Drive
Disputanta, VA 23842
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Description
This two-week course imparts the knowledge and skills required for detailed crash investigation by combining classroom lectures with practical field exercises.
Topics will include:
- Coefficient of friction
- Computing speeds from yaw marks and skid marks
- Vehicle and occupant kinematics
- Indicators of safety belt use
- Identifying and documenting evidence
- Traffic law
- Measuring the scene
- Scale diagramming
- Time and distance
Registration
Registration for the course is FREE. However, seating is limited to the first 25 Virginia law enforcement officers or Commonwealth Attorneys.
** Please remember the tuition for this course is free for Virginia Law Enforcement. However, the travel/lodging/per diem/other expenses are covered by the student and/or their agency.
To register, email Steve Williams at Steven.Williams@dmv.virginia.gov and provide the following information:
- Contact information for the person attending the class (i.e., name, department, phone number, and email address)
- Date and location of desired class
Materials Needed
Students should bring the following materials to class:
- An electronic calculator with a square root function
- A compass to draw circles
- Pencils
- Foul weather gear in case of inclement weather during field exercises
- A 50 or 100 foot measuring tape
Contact Steve Williams at Steven.Williams@dmv.virginia.gov with any questions or concerns.
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