This is the sixth part of a seven part series authored by Laurel, Maryland attorney, Robert V. Clark of the Law Firm of Clark and Steinhorn, P.C. focusing on the strategies outlined by the Maryland Highway Safety Office( MHSO) to reduce deadly and injurious crashes on Maryland's roadways.
The previous chapters have focused on dealing with intoxicated drivers, aggressive drivers, distracted drivers, young, inexperienced drivers, elderly, overly experienced drivers and improved occupant protection. We also have discussed helping keep pedestrians, bicyclists and motorcyclists out of harm's way.
Today we turn our attention efforts to improve traffic records and police traffic services. Maryland has a professed goal of developing a statewide records system that would provide safety personnel with timely and accurate information calculated to guide decisions about traffic safety issues and measures to fix extant problems.
The data would include crash-related licensing, registration and title information, EMS and trauma data and ticketing and subsequent adjudication reporting. The concept is that crash death and injury reduction is accomplished incrementally with better reporting and resultant improvement in strategies to reduce crashes and increase safety planning.
Much of traffic safety planning is driven by coordination with federal agencies such as the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration (NHTSA) any the number of other agencies including the United States Department of Transporation. The economic resources available at the federal level combined with the vast repository of data from other jurisdictions help guide better safety planning and hopefully far fewer fatal car and truck crashes in Maryland.
