GLEN BURNIE, MD (June 24, 2020) – The Maryland Department of
Transportation Motor Vehicle Administration (MDOT MVA) has been selected by the
National Governors Association to take part in a Learning Collaborative to
strengthen the use of data to fight impaired driving-related injuries and
fatalities. As part of the initiative, a core team of advisers from several
Maryland agencies will learn from national experts and study other states’
efforts to improve educational programs, technology, legislation, laboratory
testing and training to improve traffic safety.
“Eliminating
crashes involving alcohol or drugs has been a priority for my administration
and for traffic safety professionals throughout the state,” said Governor Larry
Hogan. “This Learning Collaborative will help Maryland implement evidence-based
programs and practices to reduce impaired driving.”
From
2014 to 2018, Maryland averaged 6,779 crashes, 3,190 injuries and 159
fatalities annually related to impaired driving – accounting for 31 percent of
the state’s total roadway fatalities. Additionally, heroin and opioid use in
the state increased the burden on Maryland’s Drug Recognition Expert Program
and police testing lab. Experts agree strong data collection and
standardization, including toxicology testing, is needed to fully analyze
impaired driving at the state level. In 2016, the National Safety Council
examined police reports from 50 states and found none fully captured the
necessary data to understand the extent of drug and alcohol impaired driving in
their state.
The
Learning Collaborative is expected to produce:
- Improvement and expansion of
the state’s data system to track impaired driving offenders from arrest to
adjudication to treatment;
- Increase of timeliness and
accessibility of Maryland’s crash data through dashboards that will give
highway safety partners access to timely, standardized data;
- An analysis of Maryland’s
impaired driving program to determine needs regarding manpower, training,
technology, legislation and regulation;
- Creation of a process to
increase judicial acceptance of drug recognition expert evidence in the
absence of blood test results; and
- Development of educational
programs directed at judiciary, prosecutors and law enforcement.
“The
goal is to reduce – and ultimately eliminate – traffic-related injuries and
fatalities,” said MDOT MVA Administrator Chrissy Nizer, who will serve as
Maryland’s core team leader in the Learning Collaborative. “Using a data driven
approach will allow us to effectively craft strategies to develop impaired
driving enforcement and education programs.”
Team
advisers will include MDOT Transportation Secretary Gregory Slater, Maryland
State Police Superintendent Colonel Jerry Jones, Maryland Department of Health
Deputy Secretary Fran Phillips, Maryland Secretary of Information Technology
Michael Leahy and Rebecca Phipps from the Toxicologist Office of the Chief
Medical Examiner.
“Quality
data analysis is critical to properly identify target groups, adapt and refine
countermeasures, and evaluate the effectiveness of implemented strategies,”
said Administrator Nizer, who also serves as Governor Hogan’s Highway Safety
Representative.
The
Learning Collaborative project is made possible through a grant from the
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
In
recent years Maryland has made progress in addressing impaired driving through
strategies and targets laid out in the state’s Strategic Highway Safety Plan.
An Impaired Driving Emphasis Area Team – comprised of transportation planning,
engineering and operations, public outreach, law enforcement and emergency
medical service officials – is responsible for implementing countermeasures to
reduce the number and severity of impaired driving crashes. The team also works
to improve legislation, technology, education, training and programs.
MDOT
MVA provides resources for the public including educational campaigns and other
resources. To learn more about the MDOT MVA Highway Safety Office’s Zero
Deaths campaign, visit zerodeathsmd.com or like and follow @ZeroDeathsMD on
Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
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