Following a 17 percent rise in roadway deaths in Maryland in 2015, the federal government has awarded more than $12.5 million in grant money to police departments and road safety advocates in the state to encourage better driving habits and reduce traffic fatalities and serious injuries in the state, Gov. Larry Hogan announced Monday.
The more than 80 separate grants will be used to prevent impaired, aggressive and distracted driving; encourage the use of seat belts; increase motorcyclist, pedestrian and bicyclist safety efforts; fund child passenger safety fitting stations; fund safety-related law enforcement operations; and improve Maryland's traffic data systems.
"The safety and security of Marylanders is our top priority and this vital funding will help strengthen our efforts to reduce traffic fatalities and save lives," Hogan said in a statement. "Dangerous, impaired, and distracted driving puts everyone at risk, and we will continue to do everything in our power to ensure safety on our roads."
The money can only be used for traffic safety activities, and the grants allocated based on crash data for each county and/or organization that applied for funding, according to the governor's announcement. The organizations and local agencies are working together on the Maryland Strategic Highway Safety Plan, an effort to reduce roadway fatalities by half in the next decade.
Most of the awards went to police departments for enforcement measures.
The Maryland State Police, which patrols the state's highways, received a quarter of the grant money, more than $3.1 million, and another $3.8 million was earmarked for statewide traffic safety initiatives.
Several traffic safety advocacy groups won federal money for their efforts. The Chesapeake Region Safety Council was awarded $227,530; Bike Maryland, Inc. got $82,280; and Mothers Against Drunk Driving received $37,645.
The Maryland Chiefs of Police Association received $142,230; the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene was awarded $232,411; and the Maryland State's Attorneys' Association got $349,069.
University programs studying the issue were awarded funding, too. The University of Maryland, Baltimore's Crash Outcome Data Evaluation System received nearly $600,000, and the Washington College GIS Data Analysis program got $354,441.
The Washington Regional Alcohol Program was awarded $774,813.
The full list is below:
AgencyTotal Grant Amount
Aberdeen Police Department$7,000.00
Allegany County Sheriff's Office$9,300.00
Annapolis Police Department$42,000.00
Anne Arundel County Council of PTAs$11,000.00
Anne Arundel County Department of Health$15,325.00
Anne Arundel County Police Department$94,000.00
Baltimore City Police Department$70,000.00
Baltimore County Department of Health$12,000.00
Baltimore County Police Department$319,914.00
Bel Air Police Department$7,000.00
Berlin Police Department$2,860.00
Bike Maryland, Inc.$82,280.00
Calvert Alliance Against Substance Abuse$5,720.00
Calvert County Sheriff's Office$34,750.00
Cambridge Police Department$7,500.00
Caroline County Sheriff's Office$20,000.00
Carroll County Sheriff's Office$15,000.00
Cecil County Sheriff's Office$14,000.00
Charles County Sheriff's Office$64,750.00
Chesapeake Region Safety Council$277,530.00
Cheverly Police Department$7,400.00
Chevy Chase Village Police Department$2,000.00
City of Bowie Police Department$5,000.00
Cumberland Police Department$3,950.00
Easton Police Department$18,000.00
Elkton Police Department$14,000.00
Every 15 Minutes/Sykesville Freedom$4,200.00
Frederick Police Department$33,750.00
Frostburg State University Police$2,250.00
Gaithersburg Police Department$25,000.00
Greenbelt Police Department$37,500.00
Hagerstown Police Department$12,500.00
Hampstead Police Department$3,500.00
Harford County DUI Court$57,150.00
Harford County Sheriff's Office$118,250.00
Havre de Grace Police Department$3,000.00
Howard County Police Department$74,500.00
Hyattsville Police Department$3,800.00
Kent County Sheriff's Office$6,000.00
Laurel Police Department$21,000.00
Manchester Police Department$1,000.00
Maryland Chiefs of Police Association$142,230.00
Maryland Department of Health and Mental Hygiene$232,411.60
Maryland Institute for Emergency Medical Services Systems$62,545.50
Maryland Judiciary - Anne Arundel County DUI Court$70,875.00
Maryland Judiciary - Howard County DUI Court$56,070.00
Maryland Municipal League PEA$4,500.00
Maryland National Capital Park Police - Montgomery$5,500.00
Maryland Police and Correctional Training Commissions$38,414.58
Maryland Sheriffs Association$39,660.00
Maryland State Police$3,188,751.60
Maryland State's Attorneys' Association$349,069.20
Maryland Transportation Authority Police Department$101,950.00
Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments$250,000.00
Montgomery County Police Department$235,000.00
Montgomery County Sheriff's Office$9,000.00
Mothers Against Drunk Driving$37,645.11
New Carrollton Police Department$2,000.00
Ocean City Police Department$38,525.00
Prince George's County Police Department$230,725.00
Princess Anne Police Department$4,750.00
Queen Anne's County Sheriff's Office$9,000.00
Riverdale Park Police Department$2,800.00
Rockville Police Department$21,000.00
Safe Kids Frederick County$21,285.00
Salisbury Police Department$23,715.00
Somerset County Sheriff's Office$1,250.00
St. Mary's County Circuit Court$43,505.00
St. Mary's County Sheriff's Office$37,475.00
Statewide Motorcycle Safety$28,534.40
Statewide Seatbelt Surveys$23,640.00
Statewide Teen Driver Safety Program$28,534.00
Statewide Traffic Safety Initiatives$3,847,709.00
Sykesville Police Department$3,500.00
Talbot County Sheriff's Office$4,500.00
Taneytown Police Department$3,500.00
Town of La Plata Police$11,000.00
UMD, Baltimore, Crash Outcome Data Evaluation System$599,472.69
UMD, College Park Police Department$25,200.00
University Park Police Department$1,800.00
Washington College GIS Data Analysis$354,441.55
Washington County Sheriff's Office$20,000.00
Washington Regional Alcohol Program$774,813.00
Westminister Police Department$7,750.00
Wicomico County Sheriff's Office$7,910.00
Worcester County Health Department$2,000.00
Worcester County Sheriff's Office$8,390.00
Total$12,578,026.23
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