picture of children picture of car seat Traffic Safety Digest Occupant Protection 2005
 
Project Characteristics

Aggressive Enforcement
School District Partnership
Education in the Schools
Education via Checkpoints
Program Areas

Occupant Protection
Alcohol and Other Drugs
Police Traffic Services
Type of Jurisdiction

City
Targeted Population
Impaired Drivers
Passengers of All Ages
High School Seniors
Child Restraint Violators
Safety Belt Violators
Driver and Pedestrian Vehicle Code Violators
Jurisdiction Size

144,000
Funding

Section 164: $62,000 
Contact
Sergeant Steve Akacsos
Hayward Police Department
300 W. Winton
Hayward, CA 94544
(510) 293-7036
steve.akacsos@hayward.ca.gov

Digest Listing

     

CALIFORNIA
Hayward: DUI and Safety Belt Enforcement

(PDF Version)

 

PROBLEM IDENTIFICATION

According to statistics provided by the California Office of Traffic Safety (OTS) for 2001, Hayward ranked unusually high in collisions per vehicle miles traveled.  In total injury and fatal collisions among cities with comparable populations, Hayward ranked 7 of 45. For alcohol-involved collisions, Hayward again ranked 7 of 45. For speed-related collisions, Hayward ranked 5 of 45.  For drivers 21 and over who had been drinking (HBD), Hayward ranked 2 of 45 (and 14 of 45 among HBD drivers 21-34).  In addition, Hayward ranked 8 of 45 for nighttime collisions.

These statistics indicated that Hayward critically needed a program combining aggressive enforcement efforts with public education. The program aimed to emphasize awareness of safety belt usage, and Driving Under the Influence (DUI) awareness.

GOALS AND OBJECTIVES

The DUI and Safety Belt Enforcement project’s goal was to reduce fatal and injury collisions, alcohol-involved fatal and injury collisions, hit-and-run fatal injury collisions, and nighttime fatal and injury collisions by December 2003.

STRATEGIES AND ACTIVITIES

To achieve its goals, the DUI and Safety Belt Enforcement project implemented the following campaigns and activities:

  • Conducted two DUI checkpoints for the 2003 Memorial Day weekend and Thanksgiving holidays, and 18 special DUI and safety belt saturation enforcement nights on Fridays and Saturdays in 2003. Educational material about DUI hazards and penalties was distributed at each checkpoint.

  • Created a DUI and safety belt saturation team consisting of one sergeant and five officers.

  • Published seven newspaper articles about grant objectives and various DUI enforcement activities.

  • Helped with curriculum development and training during the annual Sobriety Graduation Program, and partnered with three neighboring agencies to present the Sobriety Graduation program to 11 area high schools.

  • Designed and distributed promotional and educational materials related to traffic, DUI, and safety belt safety.

  • Provided lineup training in the enforcement area vehicle code violations occurring with the City of Hayward.

  • Assisted traffic officers in aggressively enforcing DUI, safety belt and vehicle code laws.  Patrol and Traffic officers aggressively enforced speed violations throughout Hayward.

  • Designed and distributed localized promotional material to encourage participation in educational presentations. Incentives and education items include badges, stickers, T-shirts, baseball caps, poster and essay contests, and pamphlets.

  • Purchased a digital camera and Preliminary Alcohol Screening (PAS) devices to help document and prosecute Driving Under the Influence (DUI) related collisions.

  • Purchased two Lidar (laser) units for detecting speeding drivers, many of whom were driving under the influence.

  • Provided roll call training to all patrol personnel on Traffic Safety Program goals and how to achieve them.

  • Conducted at least 10 high school presentations addressing safety belt and DUI education for some 1500 students.

  • Supported the local DUI Prevention Council and the local AVOID the 21 Campaign.

RESULTS

By the end of 2003, the DUI and Safety Belt Enforcement project had exceeded its goal to reduce the number of collisions involving injuries and fatalities. The table below shows that the project yielded dramatic reductions in many collision categories.

 

 2001

 2003

Project Goal

Project Result

Fatal and injury collision

785

597

5%

24%

Alcohol-involved

71

56

10%

21.13%

Hit-and-run

81

58

5%

28.40%

Nighttime

80

70

5%

12.5%

 

The special enforcement team’s achievements include:

  • Arresting 78 suspected DUI offenders.

  • Writing 710 moving violations, not counting safety belt violations.

  • Writing 493 car seat and safety belt citations.

  • Reaching 2,854 high-school seniors through Sober Graduation educational presentations.

 
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