Local Notes

Volume 4, Number 1 - Winter 2000/2001

• Oregon: The Salem Safe Community project is an example of how a Safe Communities coalition can become involved in emerging issues as well as more traditional traffic safety concerns. Realizing that a strong community base is essential for program success, this project has made traffic safety data available to each of Salem's 19 Neighborhood Associations for purposes of community planning. It has also worked to increase the number of bilingual certified child safety seat technicians and to extend its outreach efforts to housing developments for low-income families in order to reach this important underserved population. Observational studies have shown that the use of car seats by children under age 4 in Salem has risen 7 percent in the past year. The Safe Community project is also working with Salem's Livable Communities initiative to coordinate traffic safety efforts with projects seeking to improve the quality of life in Salem by enhancing the community's public transportation system. Finally, Claudia Hedenskog, the project coordinator, is serving on a City Council Committee considering banning the use of cellular telephones while driving. For more information, contact Claudia Hedenskog at the Salem Police Department, (503) 588-6112.

• Connecticut: The Seymour Ambulance Association, home of the Safe Communities Program of the Lower Naugatuck Valley, was chosen as the National Association of Emergency Medical Technicians 2000 Leo R. Schwartz Emergency Medical Service of the Year. The Safe Communities Program of the Lower Naugatuck Valley is also featured in the new Region I NHTSA publication Connecting Traffic Safety and Community Health. (Information about this publication can be found under Resources from NHTSA on page 4.) For more information on the Safe Communities Program of the Lower Naugatuck Valley, contact Frank Marcucio at (203) 881-5018 or by e-mail at svacems@aol.com.

• Illinois: In September, Springfield Safe Communities hosted its first Buckle Up Springfield event to encourage the use of seat belts by area motorists. A total of 500 safety packets were distributed. The centerpiece of this event was Mayor Karen Hasara's dedication of the Buckle Up Car, a safety display created in collaboration with a number of community partners, including City Water, Light, and Power (the local public utility), who built a trailer for the display, and several area sign companies, who donated signs and banners. The car itself, donated to Springfield Safe Communities by a local body shop, had been involved in a head-on collision with a truck in December 1999; both front-seat occupants survived the crash, thanks to their seat belts. A seat belt survey held in conjunction with the event revealed that 68 percent of passing motorists were buckled up, an increase of 13 percent from a similar survey done in February 2000. Buckle Up Springfield events will be held twice a year to help Springfield Safe Communities meet its goal of 80-percent seat belt use by spring 2001. For more information on Springfield Safe Communities, contact Sharon Johnson by telephone at (217) 789-2307 or by e-mail at sjohnson@culp.com.

   

  Top of Page

  ---

  
  http://www.edc.org/buildingsafecommunities/vol4_1/local.htm

  ---