Grant to aid traffic safety

Glendale police received a $440,000 state grant to conduct 44 traffic and pedestrian-safety enforcement operations, along with training and outreach programs, over the next year, officials said.

The grant will fund seven sobriety checkpoints and 15 DUI-saturation patrols, as well as safety-enforcement operations targeting motorcyclists, bicyclists and pedestrians as well as speeding and distracted drivers.

In addition, police will conduct sting operations to catch people who still get behind the wheel after leaving DUI court, ignoring the suspension or revocation of their driver’s license.

The money, which comes from the California Office of Traffic Safety, will also allow the Glendale agency to host training programs to give dozens of officers in Glendale and neighboring agencies the tools to recognize drunk and drugged driving.

“It’s invaluable because it’s really educating the officers in the area of impaired driving,” said Glendale Police Sgt. Craig Tweedy.

The agency received a similar grant last year, which allowed police officials to conduct more than 40 special-enforcement operations citywide.

DUI arrests have gone up 11% so far this year, from 488 reported through September of last year to 543 through the same time period this year, according to statistics released by the Glendale Police Department.

Meanwhile, traffic collisions, overall, have dropped slightly, from 1,906 reported through September of last year to 1,850 this year. However, 482 of those reported this year involved injuries, up from 452 with injuries through September of last year.

While pedestrian-involved traffic collisions jumped from 80 through September of last year to 101 during the same period this year, pedestrian fatalities dropped from four to two in the same comparison period.

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Alene Tchekmedyian, alene.tchekmedyian@latimes.com

Twitter: @atchek