Local Notes

Volume 5, Number 4 - Fall 2002

Morris County Safe Communities

Morris County Safe Communities (MCSC), located in north central New Jersey, exemplifies three key aspects of the Safe Communities approach: fostering cultural diversity, expanding a program's focus beyond traffic injuries, and involving local businesses and the private sector.

Morris County is ome to a substantial South and Central American immigrant community. In the town of Dover, many of these new immigrants find employment as day laborers. Lester Kelem, who works with the Morris County Organization for Hispanic Affairs, explains:

Many of the laborers travel by bicycle to their jobs in the communities surrounding Dover. They cannot afford to buy a car or take a taxi, and find even public transportation to be expensive. They are also very much at ease riding bicycles, since, in their countries of origin, many people use bicycles as their principal mode of transportation.

Many of the day laborers do not use bicycle helmets. In addition to the usual excuses (i.e., helmets are unfashionable, expensive, and uncomfortable), many of the day laborers come from countries in which helmet use is rare. Working with MCSC, Mr. Kelem distributes free bicycle helmets to day laborers he finds riding bicycles in the Dover area. With each helmet, Mr. Kelem also provides a brief lesson in the importance of using a helmet while bicycling on the busy roads of Morris County.

In addition to serving Morris County's immigrant population, MCSC is actively working to broaden its focus and work with local businesses. Karen Jean Feury, injury prevention coordinator for Morristown Memorial Hospital (the lead agency for MCSC), explains how these two strategies proved to be an especially powerful combination in Morris County:

The whole conceptual framework of Safe Communities is to go beyond traffic safety, which helps draw partners into the program. Kings Supermarkets, for example, were originally not very interested in traffic safety, but they were interested in food safety. And now we can use their parking lots for child safety seat clinics and seat belt surveys. Other coalitions call and ask if our business partners give us money. Some do. Some do not. But in-kind contributions are often worth much more than the money they could donate. Next year, we hope to be able to print safety messages on grocery bags. It won't cost anything, since the grocery bags have to be printed anyway. The project will increase public awareness and show that the markets are good neighbors. It's a win for all.

For more information on MCSC, see their website at www.co.morris.nj.us/mchtsc/ or contact Karen Jean Feury at (973) 971-4327 or at karenjean.feury@ahsys.org.

Albany Safe Communities

Albany Safe Communities is located in Dougherty County in southern Georgia. The coalition's lead agency is the Traffic Division of the City of Albany's Engineering Department. Albany Safe Communities is an active participant in several national traffic safety campaigns, including Click It or Ticket, NHTSA's seat belt law enforcement program. Albany tailors its Click It or Ticket activities to the local community by distributing hand fans featuring seat belt messages, using Spanish-language brochures, and involving the local chapter of the Alpha Kappa Alpha sorority. Albany Safe Communities also partners with both the Georgia NETS program and Operation Drive Smart, a program initially used in Gwinett County that educates students about traffic safety.

In an especially fruitful collaboration with WALB-TV, Albany Safe Communities developed a public safety announcement (PSA) campaign that includes messages on distracted driving, driving-under-the- influence by teenagers, and drowsy driving. The program keeps the cost of the PSAs at $800 each by using volunteers and a crew from the local television station, rather than paid actors, a private video production company, or a public relations firm. The PSAs are run by the local television station. Coordinator Michele DeMott reports:

We only have one major television station. It broadcasts in 36 counties of southwest Georgia. The peak daily viewership is more than 300,000. That's nearly everyone. FCC regulations require that television and radio stations reserve a certain number of spots for public service announcements. Our station would rather run a local PSA than a national one. The station has been great about giving us time during prime viewing hours. We have consistently run during the Today Show and the 5:30 and 6:00 news, as well as other "hot slots."

Albany Safe Communities uses the Traffic Division's local crash data to identify the county's top 10 crash locations, which are then publicized in their materials and activities (including the PSA campaign). The top 10 crash locations are based on a number of variables, including the number and severity of crashes and the number and severity of injuries.

For more information on Albany Safe Communities, contact Michele DeMott at (229) 878-3139 or at michele_demott@yahoo.com.

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