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The University of Alabama, Auburn University and the Alabama Department of Public Health are working together to make Alabama’s highways safer.
Gov. Kay Ivey awarded a total of $3.5 million to the two universities and Public Health to ensure motorists obey the state’s traffic laws.
“Too often a drive to work, to a vacation destination or just to shop across town ends in tragedy because of someone’s careless disregard for our traffic safety laws,” Gov. Ivey said. “I commend the work of these two universities and the Department of Public Health for combining resources to help prevent automobile crashes. I urge motorists to obey traffic laws and drive defensively.”
The University of Alabama was awarded $2.23 million to provide traffic data through the Alabama Center for Advanced Public Safety and the Alabama Transportation Institute. The data is used to determine areas with a high number of traffic crashes and driving infractions. That information is used by police and state troopers to increase patrols and monitoring in those areas.
Auburn University, awarded $1.2 million, will use funds to produce multi-media campaigns, involving radio, television, digital, billboard and print publications, to coincide with national highway safety campaigns aimed at increasing seat belt use and reducing impaired driving and speeding. The media campaigns will be geared toward demographics and areas provided by the Alabama Center for Advanced Public Safety.
The Alabama Department of Public Health was awarded $60,000 and will use funds to contract with a firm that maintains software that tracks injuries and deaths in traffic crashes throughout the state. That information helps complete Alabama Center for Advanced Safety reports.
The Alabama Department of Economic and Community Affairs is administering the grants from funds made available by the U.S. Department of Transportation’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
“These grants and programs all come together with one purpose in mind and that is to reduce crashes and promote highway safety,” ADECA Director Kenneth Boswell said. “ADECA is pleased to join with Gov. Ivey and these programs in this worthwhile effort to prevent traffic related deaths and injuries.”
ADECA administers a wide range of programs that support law enforcement, victim programs, economic development, water resource management, energy conservation and recreation.
