Safe Communities
Safe Communities is a major new NHTSA initiative representing the next generation of traffic safety programs. The Safe Communities approach:
- emphasizes the importance of obtaining and analyzing local data, as well as of linking traffic safety data with public health cost, and other data to provide an accurate picture of the local injury problem and its effects on the community
- transcends the usual traffic safety partners to include public health medicine, emergency medical
services, law enforcement, business, and community organizations in a Safe Community coalition
- places a special emphasis on citizen involvement
- incorporatates prevention, acute care, and rehabilitation as essential components of an integrated and comprehensive injury control system
A Safe Community project begins with a data analysis that indentifies particular injury probelms within that community. The Safe Communities coalition uses this analysis to target, design, implement, and evaluate projects to prevent a targeted injury among a specific group (for example, pedestrian injuries to elementary school children). Over time, the coalition expands its scope identifying and targetting additional injury problems and implementing additional injury prevention activities.
On May 15, 1996, Dr. Ricardo Martinez, NHTSA administrator, inaugurated Safe Communities with a live teleconference linking 30 interactive sites and simulcast over several specialized satellite channels, including the Law Enforecement Television Network. This event introduced Safe Communities to thousands of traffic safety and public health, law enforcement, fire protection, and emergency medical services professionals, as well as educators and community leaders. A workshop that explores the STRONG>Safe Communities approach was held in Albuquerque, New Mexico, in April.
Back to Traffic Safety Homepage