BEVERLY HILLS—The Beverly Hills Police Department was awarded a $152,900 grant from the California Office of Traffic Safety (OTS) on Tuesday, October 13, in an effort to improve the collection and documentation of vehicular crash data.
The six-figure subsidy will be used to create a new, or bolster an existing, electronic crash reporting system, with software that can expedite and streamline data submission to the California Highway Patrol’s Statewide Integrated Traffic Records System (SWITRS).
“High quality safety data is critical. It’s used to determine the nature of our road safety problems and it informs our actions on how best to address them,” said OTS Director Barbara Rooney in a press release announcing the state initiative. “We are happy to provide local agencies with the necessary tools to develop or enhance their electronic traffic reporting systems.”
The program is new for 2021, according to state officials, and will run from October 1, 2020 thru September 30 2021. In addition, the grant funds will also be used to develop an electronic citation system, with goals to increase traffic safety and security for city drivers through its use.
“Accurate and timely data is critical to the safety of our roads,” said Beverly Hills Police Department Police Chief Dominick Rivetti. “This funding will help paint a clearer picture of our biggest traffic safety issues.”
