LEGISLATIVE ACTION ITEM
SPONSOR: Grover C. Robinson, IV, Mayor
SUBJECT:
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FLORIDA DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION (FDOT) SUBGRANT FOR HIGHWAY TRAFFIC FUNDS
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RECOMMENDATION:
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That City Council accept the FY 2023 Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) Subgrant for Highway Traffic Safety Funds in the amount of $45,000. Further, that City Council authorize the Mayor to take the actions necessary to execute and administer the grant, consistent with the terms of the grant and the Mayor’s Executive Powers as granted in the City Charter. Finally, that City Council adopt the supplemental budget resolution appropriating grant funds.
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HEARING REQUIRED: No Hearing Required
SUMMARY:
According to recently published Traffic Safety Facts 2018 Alcohol-Impaired Driving by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), there were 10,511 alcohol related fatalities in 2018. Of those crashes, 67% (7,051) involved a driver with a blood alcohol concentration (BAC) of .15 g/ dL (grams per deciliter) or higher. Florida saw 26% of their fatalities caused by drivers with a BAC of .08 or higher. The City of Pensacola is not immune to the problems caused by people deciding to Drive Under the Influence (DUI).
This is reflected in the City of Pensacola’s ranking on the Florida Department of Transportation’s (FDOT) FY2023 Highway Safety Matrix (HSM) - Ranking of Florida Cities, Impaired Driving category. Pensacola is ranked 6th out of the 103 Florida Group II Cities for serious injuries and fatalities related to impaired driving (Group II: Population of 15,000-74,999). The HSM rankings are based on the total actual serious injuries and fatalities statewide from 2016 to 2020.
The City of Pensacola, located in Escambia County, is not only a popular place to live, but also a popular tourist destination. The City of Pensacola has a permanent population of approximately 55,000 residents. However, the number of people in the city limits during working days and evenings is significantly higher. An estimated 100,000 vehicles traverse city limits daily as motorists travel to and from work, shopping, errands, etc. Additional traffic is projected during tourist season as residents and tourists head to area beaches and attractions. The daily traffic can be more than 250,000 vehicles during holidays and the summer months. One example of the drastic increases of population, and the influx of such, was with a recent three-day event at the Pensacola Bay Center in Downtown Pensacola that drew over 40,000 people during the few days. Another event, the Sunbelt Basketball Tournament draws thousands of people from the entire southeastern United States for multiple days, to enjoy the City of Pensacola. The Pensacola Police Department sees the influx of tourism daily, to include the traffic problems associated with it, but we know we can keep the citizens and tourists safe with extra enforcement shifts geared at reducing traffic statistics. It should also be noted, the City of Pensacola is the largest city in the panhandle of Florida, from the Alabama state line to Tallahassee. Thus, almost anyone traveling the area from out of state, and those within state, come to Pensacola because it is the hub for this area of the state.
During 2017, FDOT began reconstructing the Pensacola Bay Bridge. This bridge is an artery between Pensacola Beach and Downtown Pensacola. Both locations contain most of the areas’ bar and restaurant establishments, which draw many patrons, especially during the evening and nighttime hours. Coincidentally, much of the construction work on the Pensacola Bay Bridge is being performed during these same hours. The current traffic matrix shows the City of Pensacola is now 20th out of 103 Florida Group II Cities in work zone traffic problems. This has been evident with the increase in traffic now that the coronavirus pandemic is slowing down and travel is increasing. There have been traffic fatalities within this work zone and directly related to impaired driving.
The traffic related statistics, to include impaired driving offenses, are continuing to rise within the City of Pensacola. The Pensacola Police Department (PPD) has significantly increased our efforts over the years, and will continue to do so, to make the roadways safer. Officers have been working overtime via FDOT subgrant funding to combat these statistics over the past few years. These efforts have shown to be useful to lower statistics, but we still have a long way to go to make our roadways some of the safest in the area. The PPD is determined to increase our efforts even more and encourage officers to work overtime for extra enforcement shifts to combat impaired driving offenses. We will also provide, as in years past, continued training in detection and enforcement of DUIs. Accompanied with the traffic statistics, the PPD is requesting overtime salary and benefits to pay for additional officers to conduct high visibility enforcement activities.
With the FDOT subgrant funding that is being provided, the Pensacola Police Department (PPD) will utilize countermeasures detailed in the NHTSA Tenth Edition of the "Countermeasures that Work (CTW): A Highway Safety Countermeasure Guide for State Highway Safety Offices." Specifically, the CTW’s found under Chapter 1: Alcohol-and Drug-Impaired Driving. This includes CTW Chapter 1) Sections:
• 2. Deterrence: Enforcement: Subsections
2.1 Publicized Sobriety Checkpoints
2.2 High Visibility Saturation Patrols
2.3 Preliminary Breath Test Devices (PBTs)
• 5. Prevention, Intervention, Communications, and Outreach: Subsections
5.2 Mass-Media Campaigns
5.4 Alternative Transportation
5.5 Designated Drivers
• 6. Underage Drinking and Drinking and Driving: Subsections
6.2 Zero-Tolerance Law Enforcement
6.5 Youth Programs
• 7. Drug-Impaired Driving
7.1 Enforcement of Drug-Impaired Driving
CTW Chapter 1) Section 2. Subsections 2.1 and 2.2; Section 6. Subsection 6.2; Section 7. Subsection 7.1: PPD will conduct 3 publicized checkpoints and/or high visibility enforcement (HVE) saturation/heightened operations/patrols per quarter.
During all enforcement operations related to this subgrant, drug-Impaired driving and zero tolerance traffic laws will be enforced.
The PPD will conduct a public engagement campaign using message boards, local media outlets, social media, and/or press releases to raise awareness of the dangers of impaired driving at least 2 times per quarter. Lastly, the PPD will also participate in the Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over campaign waves throughout the year.
PRIOR ACTION:
None
FUNDING:
Budget: $ 45,000 (Overtime Salary & Benefits)
Actual: $ 45,000
FINANCIAL IMPACT:
Adoption of the supplemental budget resolution will appropriate the grant funds.
LEGAL REVIEW ONLY BY CITY ATTORNEY: Yes
10/4/2022
STAFF CONTACT:
Kerrith Fiddler, City Administrator
Eric Randall, Chief of Police
ATTACHMENTS:
1) FDOT Subgrant for Highway Traffic Safety Funds, Project# M5HVE-2023-00205
2) Supplemental Budget Resolution No. 2022-098
3) Supplemental Budget Explanation No. 2022-098
PRESENTATION: No end