Severe Traffic Collisions Down 15% in Redlands; State Grant Will Help Bolster Enforcement
By David James Heiss
Redlands News Collective
Courtesy photo
Redlands Police Department Motor Officer Daniel Shahabi, on patrol.
REDLANDS — October is National Pedestrian Safety Month, a program created during the pandemic in September 2020 by the U.S. Department of Transportation.
Instances of severe or fatal traffic collisions around Redlands fell slightly more than 15% in 2024 compared to the previous year. According to the University of California, Berkeley’s Transportation Injury Mapping System (TIMS), there were 39 such incidents in 2024, three of which were fatal.
That compares to 2023, when there were 46 serious incidents, including 12 fatalities. In 2022, 13 fatalities occurred out of 43 serious incidents.
According to TIMS data, the 39 severe or fatal incidents recorded in 2024 were heavily concentrated along major commercial arteries rather than residential neighborhoods, such as the East-West Arterials, and the North-South Connectors.
Key thoroughfares including Alabama Street, Tennessee Street, and Orange Street accounted for a substantial share of severe crashes, driven by high traffic volumes crossing the I-10 corridor, and Lugonia Avenue (SR-38) and Redlands Boulevard consistently ranked among the city's highest-density collision corridors, particularly near the I-210 interchange, freeway ramps, and major shopping centers.
The improvement highlights steady progress by the Redlands Police Department’s Traffic Unit. Reestablished at the start of 2019 after budget cuts eliminated funding for the program a decade earlier, the unit was brought back in response to public demand for increased enforcement and a reduction in injury collisions, according to the city’s website. It began with two officers patrolling full time in cars and on motorcycles.
To further support RPD’s efforts, the department was recently awarded a $94,300 grant from the California Office of Traffic Safety to help bolster road safety. Funding was provided by OTS through the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
“Through focused traffic enforcement and education, we’re working toward a future where everyone will be safe on California roads,” OTS Director Stephanie Dougherty said. “By encouraging people to prioritize safety in their daily choices, we are creating a strong road safety culture together.”
Red markers indicate fatal and serious injury traffic collisions in Redlands, spanning from Citrus Plaza along Alabama Street in the northwest and extending east toward Judson Street. (Map courtesy of UC Berkeley SafeTREC / TIMS)
According to Police Department spokesman Carl Baker, “There have been many iterations of the unit’s organization” throughout the years. “Currently it is one sergeant, one motorcycle officer, one traffic (patrol car) officer, two parking control officers and three volunteers. They are responsible for all traffic and parking enforcement in the city, respond to traffic collisions, follow up hit-and-run investigations, major injury investigations and fatal collisions, radar trailer deployment, traffic investigations involving a felony crime and carrying out OTS grant activities.”
The city plans to use the funds to conduct additional DUI checkpoints and high-visibility operations targeting drivers distracted by texting. Officers will also target motorists who endanger pedestrians or cyclists, while providing community presentations on traffic safety topics like speeding, impaired driving, and pedestrian safety.
Additionally, the grant will fund officer training and recertification for Standard Field Sobriety Tests, Advanced Roadside Impaired Driving Enforcement, and Drug Recognition expertise, alongside continued enforcement of crash-causing violations like red-light running, speeding, and failing to yield.
Funding will also help cover some of the overtime costs associated with the unit, Baker said.
“We are grateful to receive this grant, which will strengthen our traffic enforcement efforts,” Traffic Unit Sgt. Jeff Frisch said. “Through a combination of education and enforcement efforts, our goal is to reduce dangerous driving behaviors, prevent crashes, and make roads safer for everyone.”
UC Berkeley’s Place Traffic Safety Dashboard requires a free registration to use, but may be viewed at Statewide Analysis by Place | Traffic Safety Dashboards 2024.
The city is recruiting residents to apply for a volunteer position on the Traffic and Parking Commission, through Nov. 5.
Commisioners help carry on educational activities in traffic matters, supervises the preparation and publication of traffic reports, receives complaints relating to traffic matters and recommends to the City Council ways and means of improving traffic conditions and the administration and enforcement of traffic regulations.
It also advises City Council on the development of adequate parking for commercial and retail uses, recommends policies to encourage, develop and support adequate parking within the city, recommends actions for the establishment of long-term parking plans — in particular, the Downtown Redlands Business Area, and advises the City Council in the administration of resources for the development of parking.
The commission meets quarterly on the fourth Thursday of February, May, August and November at 6 p.m.
Residents interested in applying for this non-salaried position may request an application form from the City Clerk’s Office, 35 Cajon St., Suite 4, phone: 909-798-7510, or by downloading an application from the city’s website at https://www.cityofredlands.org/current-openings.