Once again this year the Billerica Police Department has been awarded a grant to enhance pedestrian safety, in order to help make sharing the road in Billerica a safer place for pedestrians and bicyclists, the Billerica Police Department was recently awarded a $ 5000. grant by the Executive Office of Public Safety and Security (EOPSS) Highway Safety Division from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). The funding comes from approximately $280,000 specifically provided to improve pedestrian and bicyclist safety in the Commonwealth.

According to the Massachusetts Traffic Records Analysis Center (MassTRAC), there have been 320 fatal injuries and 3,456 serious or incapacitating injuries sustained by pedestrians in motor vehicle crashes from 2008 to 2012. During the same time frame, bicyclists sustained 1,106 serious or incapacitating injuries and 43 fatal injuries as a result of motor vehicle crashes.

Bicyclists and pedestrians are particularly vulnerable to the motoring public because they may not be immediately visible to drivers and unlike those in vehicles, nothing protects them from impact. All users need to learn to share the road safely and be mindful of one another and the law.

Residents can expect to see a combination of enforcement techniques including crosswalk stings using decoy pedestrians. The department is committed to improving pedestrian safety and cracking down on drivers, pedestrians, and cyclists who do not share the road appropriately, so no one puts themselves or others in harm’s way.

The Billerica Police Department, in partnership with EOPSS, recognizes that traffic crashes are preventable and is committed to using this grant to reduce the number of motor vehicle-related fatalities and injuries involving pedestrians and bicyclists in Billerica because any death or injury on our roadways is one too many.

The link below is an informational clip on BATV for pedestrians as well as drivers, please take the time to view it.