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Traffic Safety Digest - Spring 2001 


Traffic Safety Digest - Spring 2001 

CALIFORNIA
Santa Clara Police Department
Collision Report Data Collection and Processing

 

PROJECT CHARACTERISTICS PROGRAM AREA(S)
  Outstanding collaborative effort   Police Traffic Services
       
TYPE OF JURISDICTION    
  City    
       
TARGETED POPULATION(S) JURISDICTION SIZE
  Motorists   100,000


PROBLEM IDENTIFICATION
From 1993 to 1996, the police department traffic unit in Santa Clara, California, reduced its enforcement squad by 33 percent, from 12 motorcycle officers to 8. Correspondingly, citations for hazardous traffic violations decreased 32 percent from 1993 to 1996 (from 5,103 to 3,480). During the same period, motor vehicle crashes resulting in injury increased by 20 percent, with 21.5 percent of these crashes determined to be speeding-related.

The Santa Clara Police Department's traffic unit is responsible for enforcing all traffic laws, and for responding to, and documenting all traffic crashes. Data indicates that traffic unit officers spend an average of 32.78 minutes at the scene of non-injury crashes, and 60.54 minutes at injury crashes. The majority of this time is spent collecting data for a handwritten collision report. Because of the time required to respond to vehicle crashes, traffic unit officers were unable to sufficiently impact the driving behavior of Santa Clara motorists, through enforcement activities. In fact, during 1996, officers issued an average of only 2.5 citations per day for hazardous moving violations.


GOALS AND OBJECTIVES
In an effort to reduce fatal and injury traffic crashes in Santa Clara, especially those resulting from excessive speed, the Santa Clara Police Department developed the Collision Report Data Collection and Processing program in 1999. Objectives of the program were to:

  • Decrease total fatal and injury crashes by 10 percent (from 528 in 1996, to 495 in 1999); and speeding-related fatal and injury crashes by 10 percent (from 127 in 1996, to 114 in 1999)
  • Create a collision reporting software program for use on laptap computers, that allows officers to directly input data necessary to complete a collision report
  • Reduce the time required to complete a non-injury traffic collision report from 32.78 minutes in 1996, to 26.22 minutes in 1999; and the time required to complete an injury traffic collision report from 60.54 minutes in 1996, to 48.43 minutes in 1999
  • Identify ten city intersections with the highest crash rates, and target enforcement in these areas, to increase motorists' compliance with traffic laws


STRATEGIES AND ACTIVITIES
Santa Clara Police Department officials used grant funding to purchase laptop computers for all traffic unit motorcycle officers. Each computer was equipped with a magnetic strip card for prompt entry of crash data. The computers were pen-based to allow officers to enter data directly into the software program, using their handwriting. Once completed, the reports were printed onto a standard traffic collision report form.

Voice dictation was also incorporated into the software program, allowing officers to speak directly into the computer, and translating their speech into text. This reduced the need for typing or lengthy handwritten reports.

All motorcycle officers were trained in the use of the computer equipment and software program. They were then deployed to each of the ten high-collision intersections, to provide increased traffic enforcement.


RESULTS
As a result of the Santa Clara Police Department's Collision Report Data Collection and Processing program, injury and fatal motor vehicle crashes decreased from 528 in 1996, to 401 in 1999. Speeding-related fatal and injury crashes decreased from 127 in 1996, to 120 in 1999. Additional results included the following:

  • Use of the computers and software program reduced the time required for officers to clear a crash scene from 32.78 minutes in 1996, to 29.5 minutes in 1999
  • The average number of citations issued for hazardous violations increased from 2.5 per day in 1996, to 8.2 per day in 1999
 

FUNDING
  State: $56,550
CONTACT  
 

Lieutenant Roger Luebkeman
Santa Clara Police Department
1541 Civic Center Drive
Santa Clara, CA 95050
(408) 261-5324



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