Sunnyvale Department of Public Safety Receives $76K Grant for Special Traffic Enforcement, Collision Prevention

The Sunnyvale Department of Public Safety (DPS) has been awarded a $76,000.00 grant from the California Office of Traffic Safety for a year-long program of special enforcements and public awareness efforts to prevent traffic-related deaths and injuries.

The Sunnyvale DPS says they will use the funding as part of the City’s ongoing commitment to keep Sunnyvale’s roadways safe and improve the quality of life through both enforcement and education, according to a press release.

The grant from the California Office of Traffic Safety will fund various education and enforcement activities for the 2020 federal fiscal year including:

• DUI checkpoints and saturation patrols aimed at taking suspected alcohol/drug-impaired drivers off the road.
• Targeted Traffic Enforcement operations.
• Highly publicized Distracted Driving enforcement operations targeting drivers using handheld cell phones and texting.
• Checking for seat belt and child safety seat compliance.
• Speeding, red light and stop sign enforcement.
• Compilation of DUI “Hot Sheets” identifying repeat DUI offenders.
• Specialized DUI and drugged driving training for officers to enhance their ability to identify and apprehend suspected impaired drivers.
• Know Your Limit campaigns to reach out to members of the community and raise awareness of the relationship between alcohol use and impairment.

“Getting in a vehicle remains one of the most dangerous things we do,” said Barbara Rooney, Director of the California Office of Traffic Safety. “We must continue to work with our partners in law enforcement to shift that realization and make traveling on our roads safer.”

Funding for this program was provided by a grant from the California Office of Traffic Safety, through the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.