A TWO-CAR crash at Warner Avenue and Goldenwest Street in Huntington Beach in 2019 sent one driver to the hospital (HBFD photo).

The Huntington Beach Police Department will be rolling out an enhanced police traffic services program to aid in deterring dangerous and illegal driving behaviors that increase the risk of crashes in the community. The added enforcement and safety programming is made possible thanks to a $788,000 grant.

“The HBPD is always looking for opportunities to incorporate additional traffic safety enforcement and education in our city,” said Chief of Police Julian Harvey. “This grant funding allows us to deploy necessary traffic enforcement measures and community outreach programming to assist with our goal of reducing fatal and serious injury collisions in our community.”

The grant will pay for additional enforcement measures and programs, including:

• DUI checkpoints and patrols specifically focused on suspected impaired drivers.
• Enforcement operations focused on suspected distracted drivers in violation of California’s hands-free cell phone law.
• Bicycle and pedestrian safety enforcement operations focused on driver behaviors that put vulnerable road users at risk.
• Enforcement operations focused on top violations that cause crashes: speeding, failure to yield, running stop signs and/or red-lights, and improper turning or lane changes.
• Community education presentations on traffic safety topics, such as distracted driving, DUI, speeding, and bicycle and pedestrian safety.
• Collaborative enforcement efforts with neighboring agencies.
• Officer training and/or recertification: Standard Field Sobriety Test (SFST), Advanced Roadside Impaired Driving Enforcement (ARIDE) and Drug Recognition Expert (DRE).

The grant program will run through September 2022.

Funding for this program was provided by a grant from the California Office of Traffic Safety, through the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.