Beverly Hills Police Get $90K Grant For Traffic Enforcement

BEVERLY HILLS, CA — The Beverly Hills Police Department received a $90,000 grant from the California Office of Traffic Safety for a one-year enforcement and education program, BHPD announced.

The money will fund activities intended to reduce deaths and injuries on California roads, police said.

"Contributing factors to traffic fatalities are drivers being distracted as a result of technology and drivers who are impaired by alcohol and or drugs. This grant funding will provide additional opportunities for Beverly Hills Police Officers to combat these and other devastating problems such as speeding and crashes at intersections," Beverly Hills Police Chief Sandra Spagnoli said.

The grant-related activities are for the 2020 federal fiscal year, which began Oct. 1 and will run until Sept. 30, 2020.

The funding from the OTS will be used for programs such as:

• DUI/driver license checkpoints.
• Patrols specifically looking for suspected alcohol and/or drug-impaired drivers
• Patrols targeting violations of California's hands-free cell phone law and vehicle code violations by drivers, motorcyclists, bicyclists and pedestrians that put other roadway users at risk.
• Patrols targeting the primary causes of crashes: speeding, improper turns, running stop signs or signals, right-of-way violations and driving on the wrong side of the road
• Traffic safety education presentations for youth and community members on distracted and impaired driving, bicycle and pedestrian safety.
• Creating "Hot Sheets" identifying repeat DUI offenders
• Officer training to identify suspected impaired drivers and conduct sobriety tests.

"Getting in a vehicle remains one of the most dangerous things we do," Office of Traffic and Safety director Barbara Rooney said. "We must continue to work with our partners in law enforcement to shift that realization and make traveling on our roads safer."

Funding for this program was provided by a grant from the California Office of Traffic Safety, through the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.