The Long Beach Department of Health and Human Services announced Tuesday it has been awarded a $160,000 state grant to launch the city’s first Distracted Driving Prevention Program.
The grant from the California Office of Traffic Safety will be used to build on the city’s “GreenlightLB Program,” which provides health and safety information related to marijuana, and supports a variety of strategies to help prevent distracted driving, said Lara Turnbull of the DHSS.
The new program will include the development and implementation of a citywide DriveSafeLB campaign, an effort focused on changing the behavior of motorists through public awareness, education and informed decision-making, Turnbull said.
Turnbull said the funds will be used to:
— conduct in person, and/or virtual, education opportunities for youth and young adults to promote safe, distraction-free, responsible driving behaviors;
— develop and disseminate age and culturally appropriate educational resources through print and digital media; and
— collect and evaluate local data related to distracted driving, which will be used to inform future program efforts and measure changes to safe driving behavior over time.
For more information, visit www.longbeach.gov/health.