Enact enhanced sanctions for high BAC offenders including sanctions for first-time offenders with high BACs comparable to those for repeat offenders.

Integrate high-visibility impaired driving enforcement saturation patrols and checkpoints with other speed and unbelted enforcement campaigns to expand opportunities to detect and arrest DUI and drugged-impaired drivers.

Strengthen and expand enforcement use of passive alcohol sensors, particularly during checkpoints, to detect alcohol in ambient air to initiate a driving while intoxicated (DWI) investigation.

Promote officer awareness and consistent use of Mississippi’s State Online Non-Adjudicated Registry or SONAR system to populate the Mississippi’s DUI Confidential Registry to ensure law enforcement, prosecutors, judges, and court clerks have the information necessary to identify repeat DUI offenders.

Publicize and enforce underaged drinking law for drivers under age 21.

Enact open container law prohibiting an open alcoholic beverage container and its consumption by motor vehicle drivers or passengers.

Advance oral fluid testing pilot program for law enforcement to be used as a roadside tool for probable cause to strengthen the detection of suspected drug-impaired drivers.

Require all agency law enforcement officers, in addition to Standard Field Sobriety Testing (SFST), to receive Advanced Roadside Impaired Driving Enforcement (ARIDE) training to meet the growing demand of drug-impaired driving detection and arrest.

Strengthen candidate pool of highly trained and qualified officers to serve as certified Drug Recognition Experts (DREs) and promote officer use of DREs to detect and apprehend substance involved drivers with procedures that will increase the DUI conviction rate.

Require alcohol ignition interlocks as a condition for license reinstatement for BAC test failure including misdemeanor DUI first and second post-conviction as well as test refusal, and/or high BAC (.15 or higher) offenders prior to conviction.

Expand high-supervision DUI/Drug Courts for high-risk repeat offenders to be used as a postconviction tool and not as a diversion program allowing the offender to bypass conviction.

Strengthen intensive supervision programs to closely monitor offenders to control convicted offenders and reduce recidivism.

Conduct highly publicized compliance checks and server training for alcohol retailers and merchants to reduce sales to underage and over-served persons.

Conduct public outreach on accessible safe-ride alternative transportation services.

Increase outreach programs to target substance abuse prevention in schools and communities.

Require all enforcement agencies’ use of eCrash and eCite systems to enable more consistent and reliable agency reporting of DUI arrests and convictions reported to the MDPS Criminal Information Center (CIC) for more complete criminal history records.

Expand Screening, Brief Intervention and Referral to Treatment (SBIRT) in emergency departments, trauma centers, colleges, and social service settings.

Increase dedicated enforcement campaigns coupled with social norming media outreach focusing on unbelted, distracted, and impaired driving.

Increase safety education at schools and events to increase traffic safety culture of young drivers and adolescents, including increasing the awareness of the dangers of unbelted drivers and occupants, speed, impaired driving, and distracted driving.

Assess the benefits of reinstituting previously required driver’s road test for novice drivers operating under a learner’s permit to evaluate driving skills to obtain full unrestricted license.

Assess the benefits of Graduated Drivers’ Licensing (GDL) passenger restrictions for drivers aged 17 and younger for the first six months of the provisional license.

For permit holders, incorporate a minimum of 10 hours of nighttime driving into the existing 50 hours of supervised driving.

Identify funding for and require driver education classes throughout the state through public schools (especially rural schools), as well as through private providers for driving-age teens.

Adopt hands-free cell phone use for all drivers and enhance to a criminal penalty.

Use geometric design principles to reduce the number of severe crashes at intersections
Improve signalized intersections.

Use signs to improve intersection safety.

Update pavement markings to reduce the risk of intersection crashes.

Apply access management principles as described in the Mississippi Access Management Guide to increase spacing between intersections and business access, limit the number of driveways located close to intersections, and reduce conflict points.

Prioritize pedestrian movements at intersections to limit vehicle/person collisions.

Improve lighting to increase driver visibility.

Incorporate speed-reducing factors to reduce the severity of intersection crashes.

Improve enforcement involvement to ensure road users follow the law.

Add pavement markings and rumble strips to keep drivers alert and reduce the risk of lane departure.

Improve the shoulder and clear zone to reduce the severity of crashes involving vehicles that leave the travel way.

Install or improve lighting to increase driver visibility.

Improve the geometric design of the road to reduce the risk of lane departure crashes.

Improve geometric design of curves to reduce the chances of a vehicle exiting the road.

Improve road design and signage to reduce speed-related lane departure crashes.

Improve enforcement along roads.

Develop and promote an accessible online mechanism for law enforcement officers, medical staff, family members, or friends to notify Department of Public Safety Driver Service Bureau licensing of at-risk drivers for an assessment of the driver’s ability to safely drive.

Reinstitute road testing for at-risk older drivers demonstrating a potential decline in the ability to safely drive.

Review and confirm screening protocol and training for licensing personnel to effectively identify drivers demonstrating a decline in physical or cognitive functioning.

Examine procedures for assessing medical fitness to drive and ensure medical review practices align with Driver Fitness Medical Guidelines (National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) & American Association of Motor Vehicle Administrators (AAMVA).

Assess older driver licensing approaches for drivers identified as higher risk to limit driving risks while supporting greater personal autonomy to drive.

Establish a broad-based older driver coalition to assess and create a guide for addressing older adults’ driving and transportation needs.

Establish an online “one-stop” resource to guide older drivers and their family/friends on navigating changing driving needs and available resources.

Offer driver refresher course or an online resource for older drivers to learn about new infrastructure features (e.g., roundabouts), emerging safety issues (e.g., drug-impaired driving), vehicle safety technologies such as advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS), and in-vehicle technology distractions.

Organize a Transportation Safety Capital Day to facilitate outreach to legislators.

Incorporate legislators and identify champions early in policy change.

Develop a traffic safety legislative group.

Use people affected by crashes to influence those who can implement change.

Conduct vision session to establish buy-in from agency leaders.

Work with prosecutors to assess the judicial process and outcomes for traffic safety offenders.

Work with lawmakers and law enforcement to strengthen the distracted driving law and make sure it is enforceable.

Simple explanatory communication and documentation.

Improve stakeholder collaboration.

Increase agency partnerships to support technology grants through data sharing.

Integrate seat belt and DUI high-visibility enforcement checkpoints and saturation patrols with emphasis on rural communities during nighttime hours when seatbelt use is lower, DWI is higher, and crash risk is greater.

Strengthen penalties for lack of seat belt use including increased violation fines and/or progressive fines for repeat offenses coupled with public outreach to deter unbelted motorists.

Bolster Law Enforcement Liaison program to support and encourage local law enforcement participation in national traffic safety enforcement campaigns.

Build political and community support for primary seat belt enforcement particularly for local law enforcement in rural communities.

Promote peer-to-peer unbelted outreach programs that address social norms/shared expectations for seatbelts, particularly for low-seat belt-use groups.

Strengthen focused communications and public outreach campaigns, coupled with enforcement, directed at low-seat belt-use or high-risk groups.