Albuquerque Safe Streets |
NEW MEXICO |
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PROBLEM IDENTIFICATION
New Mexico is the fifth largest state
in land area, but is sparsely populated by only 1.7 million residents, one-third
of whom reside in Albuquerque. Albuquerque annually attracts over 3.1 million
visitors to events such as the Kodak International Balloon Fiesta and the
New Mexico State Fair, giving rise to increased population growth during
these times of year, severe traffic congestion, increased crime, and an
increase in traffic crashes.
GOALS AND OBJECTIVES
The goal of the Albuquerque Safe Streets project was to increase safety
in Albuquerque's streets and neighborhoods through the following objectives:
STRATEGIES AND ACTIVITIES
In February 1997, the Albuquerque Police Department (APD) launched an aggressive
and ambitious plan to make the city's streets and neighborhoods safe. The
Albuquerque Major, the City Council, and the city's Chief of Police formed
a partnership with the New Mexico Traffic Safety Bureau and the Motor Transportation
Officers of the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) to undertake a series
of activities and strategies to help meet the project's goal. Traffic records
and crime data were analyzed, to help identify the various problems. City
funds to implement the Safe Streets project were identified and matched
by the Traffic Safety Bureau and the FHWA.
During the first phase of implementation, Albuquerque was divided into sections
based on frequency of crashes and crimes. This first phase focused on intense
traffic enforcement and visibility, through deployment of a special team
of 10 officers for a period of 3 weeks. This special team focused on speed,
aggressive driving, unsafe commercial vehicles, and drug and narcotics interdiction.
The goal of the team was to promote interaction between the officers and
the community, using neighborhood associations, community input, and officer
foot patrols as tools to encourage active participation by the community.
During the same time, a variety of other activities were initiated at additional
locations in concert with other area law enforcement agencies. These activities
included driving while intoxicated (DWI) saturation patrols, DWI and occupant
protection checkpoints, and speed enforcement activities. As a side result,
the increase in these activities compelled the Metropolitan Court of Albuquerque
to increase court sessions from once weekly to daily.
The APD was successful in raising public awareness of traffic safety through keen use of the media to report on the "stings," citation activities, and enforcement efforts; and also to provide air time for public input on the various operations. The result of the media attention was high visibility for the APD and an increase in public knowledge and support for the project activities.
Albuquerque's attraction to visitors and its population growth have also given rise to increased road construction, another area targeted for increased enforcement activities. The APD coordinated work zone enforcement with several other agencies to post speed reduction signs and position an officer in the area using a laser speed-monitoring device. Seven hundred citations were issued within a two-week period in 1997.
RESULTS From February through July 1997, 50,928 traffic citations (a 100 percent increase from the same period the previous year) were issued and 289 felony arrests were made. In addition, 424 DWI arrests were made, 88 stolen vehicles recovered, 1,118 misdemeanor arrests made, and 307 vehicles towed for having no insurance coverage. Safety belt use increased to 93 percent and traffic fatalities decreased by half from 1995 statistics. A further benefit of the project was an increase in revenue for traffic safety education and enforcement programs of approximately $70,000. |
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National Highway Traffic Safety Administration | Winter 1998 |