COM 0587.001 2006-2008 - Laserfiche WebLink

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E. September 5, 2007 Ms. Brenda Ford County Council Chair 25 Aupuni Street Hilo, Hawaii 96720 • Re: Res. 294-07 Dear Councilwoman Ford, ~ ~ I believe, as many people working in this area do, that continuine to fund a Hawaii County Traffic Safety Coordinator is essential to building on the • progress which has been made in the last few years and to continue to make enough progress to reduce traffic deaths in Hawaii County. Over the past three years, Hawaii Island has made substantial progress in addressing its high death rate from motor vehicle-related crashes and impaired driving. This progress is due in a large part to the effective work of the Traffic Safety Coordinator. The Traffic Safety Coordinator has worked to effectively engage police, courts, emergency room providers, Hawaii County agencies, schools, and the media in the effort to reduce traffic deaths, impaired driving, and save lives. More specifically the Hawaii Island Traffic Safety Coordinator has: • Effectively worked with police to increase enforcement of driving under the influence laws and visibility of enforcement through media coverage. • Coordinated training of police in use of intoxilizers (see chart with increased DUI arrests). • Coordinated increased training of Drug Recognition Enforcement (DREI officers, which has substantially increased police staffing in this critical area. This increases the chances that impaired drivers who test negative for alcohol will get an in-field assessment for drugs such as meth. • Helped increase 'o~ int training for police, prosecutors, and emergency medical service personnel in operating a vehicle under the influence of intoxicants (OVUII). • Helped identify problems in the process to arrest impaired drivers including the testing processes. The coordinator has helped to improve the processes and shortened the time to get test results. The Traffic Safety Coordinator has helped improve communication between police, prosecutors, emergency rooms and testing labs. • Analyzed Hawaii County DUI arrest data to identify target audiences for interventions. • Analyzed the administrative driver's licenses revocation (ADLRO) process for opportunities to improve and facilitate improvement.