About Us: Community Traffic Safety Team (CTST)
The mission of the FDOT District 2 Community Traffic Safety Program (CTSP) is to reduce traffic-related fatalities and injuries through local communities solving local problems with state assistance as we strive for the goal of Target Zero.
District 2 covers the Northeast Florida region including the 18 counties of Alachua, Baker, Bradford, Clay, Columbia, Dixie, Duval, Gilchrist, Hamilton, Lafayette, Levy, Madison, Nassau, Putnam, St. Johns, Suwannee, Taylor and Union. Major cities in the region include Jacksonville, Gainesville, St. Augustine, Lake City, Palatka, Perry and Starke. As a major access gateway with connections throughout Florida and into other states, District 2 plays an important role in regional mobility and the state economy.
Highway safety is at its best when we address driver behavior, road conditions, and vehicle factors as interacting aspects of collision and injury prevention. Through events, ongoing education programs, and action projects, individuals and agencies combine as a resource to improve awareness and understanding of safety issues on a local level.
What Are CTSTs?
CTSTs are locally-based groups of highway safety advocates who are committed to solving traffic safety problems through a comprehensive, multi-jurisdictional, multi-disciplinary approach. Members include City, County, and State representatives as well as private industry and citizens. The common goal of each CTST is to reduce the number and severity of traffic crashes within their community.
CTSTs are multi-disciplinary groups that integrate efforts of the four “E” disciplines of highway safety—Engineering, Education, Enforcement, and Emergency Medical Services. CTSTs help to solve local traffic safety problems related to drivers, vehicles, and roadways.
Join CTST
The Northeast Florida Community Traffic Safety Program is a volunteer organization sponsored by FDOT, and CTST members work together to develop solutions. We commend our partners for their active participation and ongoing commitment to traffic safety in our 18-county district. We invite you to be a part of the solution! Please help us promote safety on our roadways and move toward zero fatalities. Interested in becoming a member? Contact TrafficSafetyTeam@dot.state.fl.us
About Us: The History of the Community Traffic Safety Program and Florida’s CTSTs
For almost 30 years, community-based traffic safety programs have been effective in providing solutions to local crash problems. Community Traffic Safety Programs (CTSPs) are an outgrowth of the successful impaired driving and occupant protection programs of the ‘70s and ‘80s. Historically, CTSPs combined traffic safety strategies to address local problems such as impaired driving and infrequent use of child safety seats and belts. Citizen advocacy groups, law enforcement, businesses, health and education agencies, courts, and the media joined efforts by forming coalitions with elected officials and community leaders to develop solutions to local traffic safety problems.
The first Corridor Traffic Safety Program in Florida was formed in 1991 in Polk County to address roadway issues on the Florida Avenue corridor. The model expanded, and in 1994 NHTSA released a student manual outlining the “Corridor/Community Traffic Safety Programs” (CTSP). A program administered by an established unit in the community sustained over time that has public and private input and participation in an action plan to solve one or more of the community’s traffic safety problems. The CTSP’s strengths include a multi-disciplinary approach with community input. This program is the result of NHTSA and the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) joining their formerly separate approaches. Click here for the original student manual PDF file.
In 1994, the first CTST in Florida was formed in Alachua County, followed by Duval in 1995. The District 2 CTSP has been recognized by numerous national organizations, including the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, the AAA Auto Club South, the American Association of Motor Vehicle Administrators, and Davis Productivity, for outstanding traffic safety programs under Andrea Atran’s direction.
CTSTs in Florida address safety through education, enforcement, engineering, and emergency services, all of which add to the richness of each team and allow broad collaboration in solving local traffic safety problems. Click here to learn more about Florida’s CTSTs and the best practices for the program.