CONNECTICUT DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
NEWS RELEASE
2800 BERLIN TURNPIKE P.O. BOX 317546
NEWINGTON CONNECTICUT, 06131-7546
FOR RELEASE: September 16, 2016
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION:
OFFICE OF COMMUNICATIONS
TELEPHONE: (860) 594-3062
FAX: (860) 594-3065
WEB SITE: www.ct.gov/dot

Connecticut Receives the Governors Highway Safety Association, Peter K. O’Rourke Special Achievement Award for Highway Safety
The Connecticut Department of Transportation (CTDOT) along with the University of Connecticut Transportation Safety Research Center (CTSRC), has received national recognition for its state of the art motor vehicle crash reporting system and development of the Connecticut Crash Data Repository. 

On August 31, 2016, representatives from CTDOT and UCONN CTSRC attended the Governors Highway Safety Association (GHSA) annual meeting to accept the Peter K. O’Rourke Special Achievement Award in the Field of Highway Safety.

The CTDOT in partnership with the CTSRC collaborated on a landmark effort to improve the quality and accessibility of the state’s crash data. “Our previous crash reporting system, which met the needs of earlier generations of state and local safety planners, was in need of being overhauled and replaced. We capitalized on the opportunity, collaborated, and produced a state-of-the-art system that enhances our ability to collect, analyze and most effectively utilize timely, complete and accurate crash data,” said DOT Commissioner James P. Redeker. “This partnership demonstrated that a multi-disciplinary interagency project team is an effective model for expediting project delivery.”

In just over two years, the CTDOT/CTSRC partnership developed a statewide electronic crash reporting system based on the national model minimum uniform crash criteria that provides real-time crash data to all highway safety users.  As a result of this project, crash report processing times have been reduced from 16 months to two weeks.   
About the Governors Highway Safety Association
The Governors Highway Safety Association (GHSA) is a nonprofit association representing the highway safety offices of states, territories, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico. GHSA provides leadership and representation for the states and territories to improve traffic safety, influence national policy, enhance program management and promote best practices. Its members are appointed by their Governors to administer federal and state highway safety funds and implement state highway safety plans.

The Peter K. O'Rourke Special Achievement Award recognizes notable achievements in the field of highway safety by individuals, coalitions, organizations, nonprofit groups, businesses, media, government agencies, universities, or programs.