Occupant Protection Emphasis Area Team Captain Tom Didone

Occupant Protection Emphasis Area Team Captain Tom Didone, Co-Chair Montgomery County Police Department Christina Utz, Co-Chair (Suzy Solo Acting) MDOT Maryland Highway Safety Office

Why do we care? • People continue to needlessly die in traffic crashes solely because they did not wear their seatbelts or properly restrain their children in the vehicle. • Too many officers continue to not wear their seatbelts because they believe the myth that they cannot “catch the bad guy” or survive an ambush situation with their seatbelt on. • In our quest “Towards Zero Deaths” the only compliance rate that is acceptable in Maryland is 100% for all occupants.

Maryland CIOT Video

Data • Occupant Protection remains a serious safety problem on Maryland Roadways. • The overall seat belt use rate in the NHTSA-weighted jurisdictions has increased from 92. 1% in 2014 to 92. 9% in 2015. • Between 2009 - 2013 unrestrained motor vehicle occupant protection fatalities on all roads in Maryland averaged 116 per year and serious injuries averaged 315 per year. • Between 2009 – 2013 there were a total of 78, 521 people identified in a crash who were seating positions 4 -6 (back seat). Of those 10, 512 were reported to be unbelted (13%). • There were a total of 125 back seat fatalities of which

Myth Busters Video

Seatbelts • Mandated for both front and back seat passengers • Proven technology that works after driver makes a mistake. • Must be worn correctly in order to rid down the crash and minimize injury. • Works in conjunction with but not in place of airbags

Airbag Demo Video

Air Bags Deploy at approximately 200 mph On-board computer determines if deployed Will cause injury if occupant is not belted A good reason to not ride with your feet on the dash • Small children and infants should never ride in the front seat • •

Rear Seat Passengers • Are seatbelts really necessary for passengers who ride in the rear passenger compartment of a vehicle?

Back Seat Crash Video

Dufief Mill Road / Quince Orchard Road • June 25, 2015 • Single vehicle driving on the wrong side of the road, swerved back, went off the road, went through a culvert and went airborne. While airborne, the vehicle struck two trees before rolling over completely. Vehicle landed on its roof and slid to final rest. • Vehicle speed prior to losing control: 65 mph (35 mph zone). • Driver and Front Passenger Survived, 2 Rear Passengers Deceased.

Calvin & Alex

We Need Your Help

EA Team Structure and Organizations • Who we are: – One of six volunteer teams supporting the implementation of the Maryland State Highway Safety Plan – Government (Federal, State, Local, and Municipal) and non-government organizations dedicated to reducing traffic fatalities and injuries – Representative members: • Maryland Department or Health and Mental Hygiene, Maryland Department of Transportation, Maryland Institute for Emergency Medical Services Systems, Local Law Enforcement Agencies, University of Maryland, Johns Hopkins University • What we do: – Developed strategies and action steps designed to increase seat belt usage to be implemented by our member agencies and organizations – Conduct quarterly meetings to discuss progress, issues encountered, and to discuss future steps – Discuss taking on new initiatives and adding action steps

Recruitment and Engagement • The Occupant Protection EAT Strategies – Improve the timeliness, accuracy, completeness, uniformity, accessibility, and integration of occupant protectionrelated data. – Enhance and improve enforcement of adult and child occupant protection laws – Implement adult and child occupant protection public awareness and education, training, and media campaigns. – Evaluate and recommend legislation and/or regulations to advance occupant protection for all ages

Strategy 1 • Improve the timeliness, accuracy, completeness, uniformity, accessibility, and integration of occupant protection-related data. – Action Item 1. 1: Establish a data exchange interface to push e-ticket and ACRS information and share this data with Maryland counties and municipalities. – Action Item 1. 2: Review ACRS definitions to standardize definitions (such as the definitions of occupant protection and unrestrained occupants) and review ACRS fields to ensure that are fully consistent with requirements. – Action Item 1. 3: Review current safety equipment use data to determine if the data has sufficient detail to support assessments of risk factors and fatality/accident rates by driver age and occupant protection subgroup and develop any necessary recommendations to support improved data collection. – Action Item 1. 4: Provide law enforcement with statistics demonstrating how occupant protection enforcement reduces fatalities and injuries – Action Item 1. 5: Evaluate the effectiveness and impact occupant

Strategy 2 • Enhance and improve enforcement of adult and child occupant protection laws. – Action Item 2. 1: Conduct high visibility day and night seatbelt enforcement (such as Click It or Ticket) on a year-round basis. – Action Item 2. 2: Provide state-wide training for law enforcement personnel on enforcement of occupant protection laws and best enforcement practices. – Action Item 2. 3: Work with Maryland’s Chiefs of Police and Sheriffs to develop a model occupant protection enforcement policy for all law enforcement agencies that promotes occupant protection enforcement as an enforcement priority. – Action Item 2. 4: Conduct current seat belt use surveys to include backseat belt usage as feasible. – Action Item 2. 5: Encourage state, municipal and local enforcement and other personnel to utilize occupant protection devices, as appropriate, when operating government-owned

Strategy 3 • Implement adult and child occupant protection public awareness and education, training, and media campaigns. – Action Item 3. 1: Seek new partnerships among social and traditional media outlets to expand Occupant Protection and Child Passenger Safety messages to the public. – Action Item 3. 2: Identify and implement components of relevant National Occupant Protection and Child Passenger Safety Campaigns. – Action Item 3. 3: Develop and translate new, and revise existing Occupant Protection and Child Passenger Safety educational materials (print and video), and distribute as needed; ensure content materials are culturally relevant for public use and applicable to community partners (law enforcement, health care, high risk, faith-based, EMS, etc). – Action Item 3. 4: Increase awareness and technical training for the public (including caregivers, law enforcement, EMS/Fire, medical, child education, faith-based and community partners)

Strategy 4 • Evaluate and recommend legislation and/or regulations to advance occupant protection for all ages. – Action Item 4. 1: Review and compare Maryland’s occupant protection laws with other states to identify model language and best practices. – Action Item 4. 2: Work with the Office of the Attorney General to draft legislation supporting occupant protection enforcement for all drivers and passengers as a primary offense under Maryland law

Next Steps • Join and participate in an EA Team can help Maryland reduce fatalities and injuries • Provide us with your contact information on the sign in sheet and we will invite you to our next meeting • May meeting

Question and Answer