Adam RollinsThis story was originally published in the Government Contracting Pipeline newsletter from Strategic Partnerships, Inc. To have the latest government contracting news stories from across the country delivered straight to your inbox, click here to subscribe.
The Maryland Department of Transportation (MDOT), alongside the state police and Institute for Emergency Medical Services Systems (MIEMSS), will spend $13.2 million to enhance traffic safety data systems and optimize data exchange across local, state and federal agencies.
The investment is part of a nationwide effort to improve crash data systems, mitigating deaths and injuries on roadways. The enhanced systems will link with the National Highway Transportation Safety Association (NHTSA) to better enable information collection and sharing between collaborating entities.
The state will upgrade the crash reporting system to prioritize data collection and management, enhancing features such as:
- Optimizing the data transfer process.
- Hiring trainers to provide extra crash data collection training to local law enforcement agencies.
- Aligning the system with the Model Minimum Uniform Crash Criteria, sixth edition.
- Automating emergency medical services (EMS) data sharing with police crash reports.
- Inventorying traffic records, prioritizing datasets related to motor vehicle crashes.
Once established, Maryland will be able to more easily collect crash data in the field and store it in a centralized database, creating a standardized level of data accuracy and reliability. The state will be able to use the information to further reduce traffic-related deaths and serious injuries. The analysis gained from studying collected data will inform transportation planners and support emergency responders in communities.
All data gathered through this nationwide initiative will be used by national, state, regional and local participants to protect both motorized and non-motorized travelers. Entities will use the information to evaluate traffic safety problems and support countermeasures to mitigate risk to life and injury.
Image by Netto Figueiredo from Pixabay
