Maryland Announces More Than $12 Million in Highway Safety Grants
Funds Distributed to Law Enforcement and Traffic Safety Advocates Statewide
Governor Larry Hogan announced over $12.5 million in federal highway safety funds granted to more than 80 agencies and organizations across Maryland to help strengthen and expand the state’s efforts to save lives on Maryland roads. The funds will be distributed by the Maryland Department of Transportation’s Highway Safety Office to law enforcement agencies and traffic safety advocates throughout Maryland.
“The safety and security of Marylanders is our top priority and this vital funding will help strengthen our efforts to reduce traffic fatalities and save lives,” said Governor Hogan. “Dangerous, impaired, and distracted driving puts everyone at risk, and we will continue to do everything in our power to ensure safety on our roads.”
The federal grants will help fund the following traffic-safety efforts:
Preventing impaired, aggressive, and distracted driving
Increasing the use of seat belts
Increasing motorcyclist, pedestrian, and bicyclist safety efforts
Funding child passenger safety fitting stations
Funding traffic safety-related law enforcement operations
Improving Maryland’s traffic data systems
To help reduce traffic fatalities and serious injuries across the state, Maryland is implementing a five-year plan known as the Maryland Strategic Highway Safety Plan (SHSP). The plan brings together local, state, and federal partners and organizations such as the National Safety Council, AAA, Mothers Against Drunk Driving and numerous other corporate, non-profit, and public sector partners. The SHSP contains more than 30 separate strategies to reduce overall roadway fatalities by at least 50 percent in the next two decades. The Plan emphasizes solutions from the “Four Es” of highway safety – Engineering, Enforcement, Education, and Emergency Medical Services.
“Our mission is to do everything in our power to eliminate traffic crashes,” said Transportation Secretary Pete K. Rahn. “Zero crashes, zero injuries and zero fatalities is our ultimate goal.”
The federal grant awards can only be used for traffic safety activities and are allocated based on crash data for each county and/or organization that applied for funding. Funds can only be spent during Federal Fiscal Year 2017 (October 1, 2016 – September 30, 2017).
