The Riverside County sheriff's Palm Desert Station has been awarded a $114,000 grant for a year-long program aimed at preventing traffic injuries and deaths through special enforcement and public awareness efforts.
The traffic enforcement grant is for the contract cities of Indian Wells, Palm Desert and Rancho Mirage, sheriff's Sgt. Dave Adams said in a statement.
"The total grant amount received from the California Office of Traffic Safety (OTS) was $114,588.00, which is to be disbursed between Indian Wells ($25,000.00), Palm Desert ($67,588.00) and Rancho Mirage ($22,000.00)," Adams said.
Traffic deaths from all causes declined by nearly 39 percent between 2006 and 2010 in California, but they rose by 2.6 percent in 2011, Adams said. State and federal officials anticipate that figures will show another rise for 2012.
"DUI deaths remain the largest sector, at nearly 30 percent of traffic fatalities," Adams said. "Recent trends show increases in two new categories - distracted driving and drug-impaired driving."
Some of the grant funded enforcement activities between each city will include:
Specialized DUI and drugged driving training such as Standardized Field Sobriety Testing (SFST), Advanced Roadside Impaired Driving Enforcement (ARIDE), and Drug Recognition Evaluator (DRE).
Funding for this program comes from the state and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
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