The Southern California Association of Governments announced Thursday it was awarded a $1.25 million grant from the California Office of Traffic Safety for its transportation safety and encouragement program, Go Human.

“Active transportation is an essential part of our region’s long-term mobility plans,” SCAG President and Long Beach City Councilman Rex Richardson said. “Providing safe options for walking and bicycling is critical to promoting social equity and healthy communities and ensuring the efficiency of our increasingly integrated transportation system.”

The grant will fund Go Human activities through Sept. 30, which include various street safety advocacy programs.

“We must do everything we can to make our roadways safer for everyone. Go Human is an essential part of that equation,” SCAG Executive Director Kome Ajise said. “This additional funding will allow us to continue our work in making Southern California a national model for active transportation advocacy and implementation.”

Southern California has some of the highest levels of traffic injuries and fatalities in the United States among pedestrians and bicyclists, SCAG officials stated.

An average of more than four people die every day in traffic collisions in the six-county SCAG region, composed of Imperial, Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino and Ventura counties.

People walking or riding bikes account for 27% of those deaths. SCAG officials said their data shows 70% of all collisions are on local residential and business district roads.

SCAG officials said the Go Human program was started in 2015 in an effort to reduce collisions, improve safety for people walking and biking and raise awareness of the importance of traffic safety.

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