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CONSIDERATION OF ACCEPTANCE OF A GRANT IN THE AMOUNT OF $95,083 FROM THE OKLAHOMA HIGHWAY SAFETY OFFICE (OHSO) TO BE USED BY THE NORMAN POLICE DEPARTMENT TO CONDUCT HIGH-VISIBILITY ENFORCEMENT, SATURATION PATROLS, INFORMATION/EDUCATION CAMPAIGNS DIRECTED TOWARD TRAFFIC SAFETY, AND PARTICIPATION IN OHSO MOBILIZATIONS; APPROVAL OF CONTRACT K-2021-49; AND BUDGET APPROPRIATION FROM THE SPECIAL GRANTS FUND BALANCE.
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BACKGROUND: The Oklahoma Highway Safety Office (OHSO) has informed the Norman Police Department that it has been awarded a $95,083 grant. The funds are allocated for general police traffic services to conduct "high visibility enforcement" in support of state and national traffic safety goals. Not all collisions and injuries can be directly attributed to a specific causal factor. Some collisions occur because drivers operate a vehicle unsafely and without due attention to traffic laws and road conditions. General traffic enforcement allows the Norman Police Department to address a greater variety of traffic problems.
DISCUSSION: The Norman Police Department will utilize data and reference sources including collision reports, public complaints, and other crime statistics to identify violations and locations that contribute to collisions. Data Driven Approaches to Crime and Traffic Safety (DDACTS) will assist to locate geographically-based patrol zones in order to identify high-crime and high-crash enforcement areas.
Full time officers, in an overtime capacity, will be assigned to identified areas. In the high visibility enforcement model, officers focus on drivers who commit common aggressive driving actions such as speeding, following too closely, and running red lights. Efforts also include impaired driving enforcement, occupant protection enforcement and related activities such as traffic safety and sobriety checkpoints. Saturation patrols may also be conducted with a primary focus on those violations that may cause or contribute to collisi...
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