PROBLEM IDENTIFICATION
The communities that comprise Salt Lake City, and Salt Lake County, Utah continue to experience an increase in traffic-related problems associated with major highway construction. Youth-related traffic and alcohol-involved incidents are also a major concern in these areas. Enforcement efforts have been hampered by a lack of communication and coordination among the various jurisdictions that serve the Salt Lake region. Specific safety issues and selective community programs needed to be addressed in some local areas.

GOALS AND OBJECTIVES
To improve communication and cooperation among the law enforcement agencies serving the Salt Lake City/Salt Lake County area, the Salt Lake County Urban Safe Communities Task Force was convened in 1998. The objectives of this task force were to:

• Address community-specific traffic safety issues identified by community groups and local law enforcement agencies
• More effectively communicate problems and opportunities between the various law enforcement agencies in the region
• Use available resources in a more efficient and effective manner
• Positively impact dangerous driving behavior and the high rate of traffic crashes in participating cities throughout the metropolitan area
• Create a forum to share ideas and programs, and assist with their implementation

STRATEGIES AND ACTIVITIES
Salt Lake County Urban Safe Communities Task force members included coalitions of law enforcement agencies, local Parent Teacher Associations (PTAs) and public health agencies. Specific communities and roadway segments in the county were targeted for a combined public outreach incorporating increased enforcement and education. Individual successful programs were showcased and shared with other communities.

A series of joint seat belt and child safety seat enforcement initiatives were undertaken in the following cities: Salt Lake, Taylorsville and Midvale. Similar impaired driving and youth alcohol enforcement activities took place in the canyon areas.

RESULTS
The Salt Lake County Urban Safe Communities Task Force was very successful in its efforts to coordinate education and traffic enforcement efforts throughout the county. These joint enforcement efforts attracted mass media coverage, increasing community participation.

The Midvale community realized a 75 percent reduction in juvenile truancy, resulting in a 75 percent decrease in youth traffic crashes and a 50 percent drop in burglaries. The countywide Safe Passage program, designed to address child abductions, resulted in a 50 percent decrease in pedestrian and bicycle crashes.

The Task Force was also responsible for initiating administrative changes in the District Attorney's Office to allow law enforcement officers to more easily issue traffic citations in neighboring jurisdictions.

SUMMER 1999