Texas Department of Transportation, Special Commission Meeting, April 19, 2022 – ENGLISH transcript >> IT IS 2:00 P.M. AND I CALL TO ORDER THE APRIL 19TH, 2022, SPECIAL MEETING OF THE TEXAS TRANSPORTATION COMMISSION IN AUSTIN, TEXAS. NOTE FOR THE RECORD THAT PUBLIC NOTICE OF THIS MEETING CONTAINING ALL ITEMS ON THE AGENDA WAS FILED WITH THE SECRETARY OF STATE 2:14 P.M., APRIL 11, 2022, WHICH IS AT LEAST TWO DAYS PRIOR TO THE MEETING IN ACCORDANCE WITH OUR GOVERNMENT CODE 551.444. AT THIS TIME, I WOULD LIKE TO ASK BEFORE WE BEGIN TODAY'S MEETING, YOU PLACE ALL CELL PHONES AND OTHER COMMUNICATION DEVICES IN THE SILENT OR OFF MODE. TO COMMENT OR REGISTER YOUR OPINION ON AN AGENDA ITEM, PLEASE COMPLETE A YELLOW CARD AND IDENTIFY THE AGENDA ITEM. BRING THAT CARD UP TO OUR DESK WITH MRS. LAWSON HERE ON THE DIAS. WHEN WE GET TO THAT AGENDA ITEM, AND AFTER THE STAFF HAS PRESENTED THE AGENDA ITEM, I WILL CALL YOUR NAME AND COME TO THE PODIUM. WHEN YOU COME UP TO THE PODIUM TO SPEAK, PLEASE STATE YOUR NAME AND THE ORGANIZATION YOU REPRESENT, AND THEN STATE YOUR REMARKS. IF YOUR REMARKS DO NOT CONCERN AN AGENDA ITEM, WE WILL TAKE YOUR COMMENTS DURING THE OPEN COMMENT PERIOD AT THE END OF THE MEETING. FOR THOSE COMMENTS, PLEASE COMPLETE A BLUE CARD. AGAIN, BRING THAT CARD UP TO OUR CLERK, MS. LAWSON HERE ON THE DIAS. WHEN YOU COME UP TO THE PODIUM TO SPEAK, PLEASE STATE YOUR NAME AND IF YOU ARE SPEAKING ON BEHALF OF AN ORGANIZATION, PLEASE LET US KNOW THE NAME THAT HAVE ORGANIZATION. PLEASE NOTE THAT DURING THE OPEN COMMENT, THE COMMISSION IS PROHIBITED, BY LAW, FROM ANSWERING QUESTIONS OR ENGAGES IN DIALOGUE WITH YOU CONCERNING REMARKS THAT ARE NOT ON THE POSTED AGENDA. REGARDLESS OF WHETHER YOU SPEAK ON AN AGENDA ITEM OR DURING THE OPEN COMMENT PERIOD, YOU WILL HAVE THREE MINUTES TO PROVIDE YOUR REMARKS. WHEN 60 SECONDS REMAIN, THE YELLOW LIGHT ON THE PODIUM TIMER WILL FLASH, MEANING YOU SHOULD START WRAPPING UP YOUR COMMENTS:WHEN THE RED LIGHT FLASHES YOUR THREE MINUTES HAS EXPIRED. I'LL NOW TURN THE MEETING OVER TO THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR MARC WILLIAMS. >> THANK YOU, CHAIRMAN. AT THIS TIME I WOULD LIKE EVERYONE'S ATTENTION DIRECTED TO THE SCREEN AS WE SHOW THE AGREE BUILDING VIDEO DESCRIBING EMERGENCY EXHIBITS AND OTHER EMERGENCY PROCEDURES. ??? >> VIDEO: ATTENTION, PLEASE, THE FOLLOWING IS A SAFETY VIDEO TO HELP ENSURE YOUR PERSONAL SAFETY WHILE AT THE TEXAS DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION GREER BUILDING. IN CASE OF A MEDICAL EMERGENCY, PLEASE CALL 9-1-1. AN AUTOMATED EXTERNAL DEFIBRILLATOR UNIT IS LOCATED HERE ON LEVEL 1, IN THE MAIN LOBBY AT THE SECURITY BOOTH. FIRST-AID KITS ARE MARKED AND LOCATED ON EACH FLOOR. FIRE EXTINGUISHERS ARE MARKED AND LOCATED ON EACH FLOOR. IN THE EVENT OF AN EVACUATION, PROCEED TO THE NEAREST EXIT. ?? ONCE OUTSIDE, PROCEED TO THE WEST PARKING LOT OF THE GREER BUILDING, LOCATED AT THE CORNER OF CONGRESS AVENUE AND 11TH STREET. IN CASE OF TORNADO OR INCLEMENT WEATHER, STAY INSIDE AWAY MOVE FROM EXTERIOR WALLS AND WINDOWS. THE DESIGNATED SHELTERS ARE: STAIRWELLS, BASEMENT, INTERIOR HALLWAYS, AND CENTRALLY LOCATED RESTROOMS. IN CASE OF ACTIVE SHOOTER OR BOMB THREAT, FOLLOW INSTRUCTIONS FROM THE PUBLIC ADDRESS SYSTEM AND ON-SITE SECURITY PERSONNEL FOR MORE DETAILS. THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME, HAVE A SAFE AND PRODUCTIVE MEETING. >> NEXT, WE'LL MOVE TO ITEM 2 WHICH IS AN OVERVIEW OF THE DEPARTMENT'S ACTIVITIES SUPPORTING SAFETY THROUGHOUT THE STATE. OUR DIRECTOR OF ENGINEERING AND SAFETY OPERATIONS LANCE SIMMONS WILL LEAD THIS DISCUSSION. LANCE? >> GOOD AFTERNOON, EVERYONE. THANKS FOR ALLOWING ME AN OPPORTUNITY TO PROVIDE AN OVERVIEW FOR OUR ONGOING SAFETY ACTIVITY SUPPORTING SAFETY THROUGHOUT THE STATE. AS YOU KNOW, WE STILL HAVE A LOT OF WORK TO DO IN THIS AREA, BUT WE VERY MUCH ARE UP TO THE TASK. JOINING ME THIS MORNING, GIVING THIS PRESENTATION, IS MICHAEL CHACHON THE DIVISION DIRECTOR FOR SAFETY DIVISION AND MICHAEL MORRIS, THE DIRECTOR OF TRANSPORTATION FOR THE NORTH CENTRAL TEXAS COUNCIL OF GOVERNMENTS. THE PRESENTATION WILL KIND OF BE A TAG TEAM VARIETY. MICHAEL CHACON AND I WILL GIVE THE FIRST PART OF IT, DEALING WITH OVERVIEW OF STATEWIDE DATA AND KIND OF THE CURRENT ACTIVITIES THAT WE HAVE GOING ON WITHIN TxDOT. THEN, MICHAEL MORRIS AND I WILL GIVE AN UPDATE ON THE HISTORY AND ACTIVITIES ASSOCIATED WITH THE MPO TASK FORCE AND LASTLY I'LL END UP BACK HERE AT THE PODIUM TO ANSWER QUESTIONS. BEFORE I GET TOO FAR, I WANT TO POINT OUT WE HAVE A VERY SPECIAL PARTNER IN THE AUDIENCE JOINING US THIS AFTERNOON, WE HAVE CHIEF JUSTICE, CHIEF JUSTIN CRANE. YES. HE IS ASSISTANT CHIEF OF ADMINISTRATION WITH DPS. THE CHIEF HAS CONTINUED AND IS A GREAT ADVOCATE FOR THE STATE OF TEXAS. AND A SUPER PARTNER HELPING OUT WITH THE MPO TASK FORCE AND SERVING ON THE ROAD TO ZERO WORKGROUP AND I APPRECIATE YOU COMING TODAY, CHIEF. SO, 2021 WAS NOT A GREAT YEAR FOR HIGHWAY FATALITIES. IN 2021, WE HAD 4486 FATALITIES ON TEXAS ROADWAYS. THAT IS THE SECOND HIGHEST EVER. HAVE TO GO ALL OF THE WAY BACK TO 1981. THAT WAS BEFORE SEAT BELTS WERE EVEN THERE. THAT 12.3 AVERAGE DEATHS PER DAY DUE TO CRASHES IS JUST A STAGGERING NUMBER FOR FY ''21. AT LEAST ONE PERSON HAS DIED EVERY DAY ON TEXAS ROADWAYS SINCE NOVEMBER 7, 2000, THAT IS THE INDUSTRY DATE THAT WE'RE WORKING SO HARD TO END. AND OVER 77,000 LIVES HAVE BEEN LOST ON OUR ROADWAY SINCE THAT DATE. AND I DON'T HAVE BUT ONE WORD FOR THAT, AND THAT IS JUST "UNACCEPTABLE." I WILL POINT OUT THAT ALL OF US HERE AT THE COMMITTEE ARE TO SOLVE THAT PROBLEM. THE STATE OF TEXAS IS AND WILL CONTINUE TO BE A LEADER AMONG THE OTHER STATES DURING THIS INCREASE TO SOLVE THIS PROBLEM. SO WHAT ARE WE DOING? LOTS. I'M GOING TO GIVE JUST A BRIEF TIMELINE ON THE ACTIVITIES OF THE SAFETY TASK FORCE. SO ROAD TO ZERO WAS ADOPTED BY THIS COMMISSION IN MAY OF 20L 2019. IN AUGUST OF 2019, THE COMMISSION APPROVED A $600 MILLION FOR SAFETY PROJECTS TO REDUCE FATALITIES AND SERIOUS INJURIES IN BOTH FY '20 AND '21. THE MAJORITY OF PROJECTS LET '21, 575 MILLION ROAD TO ZERO FUNDS WERE LET PRIOR TO AUGUST 2021. I WILL POINT OUT THE ONLY REASON THAT WASN'T 100% IS WE GOT SOME REALLY GOOD PRICES, ALL OF OF THE PROJECTS LET, BUT WE HAD 4% DUE TO UNDERRUNS AND WE SCRAPED THAT OUT AND REDISTRIBUTED TO THE DISTRICTS AND THOSE WILL LET THIS AUGUST AND THOSE WILL BE PUT TO GOOD USE. ALSO, IN AUGUST 2021 THE MPO SAFETY TASK FORCE WAS ESTABLISHED WITH COMMISSIONERS NEW AND RYAN CO-CHAIRING THIS GROUP WITH MICHAEL MORRIS AND I BEING TASKED AS CO-LEAD ROLES WITH OUR RESPECTIVE GROUPS. IN AUGUST 2021 WE HAD THE FIRST MPO SAFETY TASK FORCE MEETINGS AND MONTHLY MEETINGS HAVE BEEN HELD SINCE THAT DATE. OUR NEXT ONE IS ACTUALLY SCHEDULED FOR LATER TODAY. I DO LOVE THIS TASK FORCE. LOTS OF GREAT MINDS IN THAT ROOM. LOTS OF GREAT IDEAS. MICHAEL MORRIS HAS BEEN FANTASTIC TO WORK WITH. HE IS REALLY GOOD AT KEEPING US ON TASK. AND I WILL LEAVE TO THIS SLIDE BASICALLY SAYING THERE IS A PROPOSAL FOR FUNDING SAFETY PROJECTS OUT OF A NEW CATEGORY 11 SAFETY FUND PART OF THE PROPOSED OF THE 2023UTP. SO AS WE JUST COVERED, CHAIRMAN BUGG REQUESTED A PARTNERSHIP BETWEEN TxDOT AND MPOs BE INITIATED TO ESTABLISH THE MPO SAFETY TASK FORCE TO FOCUS ON REDUCING THE NUMBER OF DEATHS ON TEXAS ROADWAYS. ONE OF THE PRIMARY FOCUS WOULD BE ON UNSPENT FUNDS, PARTICULARLY IN CATEGORIES 5, 7, AND 8. BUT THERE ARE ALSO LOTS OF EFFORTS GOING ON HERE ON THINGS LIKE PROJECT SELECTION AND OPPORTUNITIES FOR PARTNERSHIPS, SHORT AND LONG-TERM GOALS JOINING TOGETHER ON CAMPAIGNS, WORKING TOWARD METRICS TO MEASURE EFFECTIVENESS AND LOTS OF CONVERSATIONS ON INCENTIVES. AND THERE WILL BE MORE ON THIS MPO SAFETY TASK FORCE LATER IN THE PRESENTATION. SO WE HAVE AND ALWAYS WILL TRACK AND ANALYZE LOTS OF SAFETY DATA. WE'RE PRETTY MUCH GOING TO FOCUS ON THE LAST SIX YEARS OR SO. AND YOU WILL SEE A COMMON THEME THAT WE DISCUSS ON THE NEXT FEW SLIDES IN THAT, BETWEEN 2016 AND '17 AND '18 AND '19 WE DID SEE A TREND GOING IN A REALLY GOOD DIRECTION. MAYBE NOT AS QUICK AS WE WANTED IT, BUT WE DID SEE LOTS OF POSITIVE PROGRESS. AROUND 2019, THOSE TRENDS REVERSED IN THE WRONG DIRECTION. AS A MATTER OF FACT, WE HAD JUST A 15% INCREASE BETWEEN '20 AND -- 2020 AND 2021. IT SURE HAS PUT SOME FOCUS ON, WE'VE STILL GOT LOTS OF WORK STILL LEFT HERE TO DO. WE HAVE, INDEED, SEEN LOTS OF RISKY BEHAVIORS; INCREASING STARTING AROUND THE PANDEMIC DURING THE PANDEMIC WITH THINGS LIKE SPEEDING AND IMPAIRED DRIVING AND DISTRACTED DRIVING AND PEOPLE NOT BUCKLING UP. ONE THING WE ALL TRY TO STAY FOCUSED ON IS EVEN THOUGH WE LOOK AT A LOT OF DATA, IT IS NOT JUST NUMBERS. THESE FATALITIES ARE REAL PEOPLE. THEY REPRESENT MOTHERS AND FATHERS AND SONS AND DAUGHTERS AND FRIENDS AND COWORKERS AND FOLKS WHO WE GO TO CHURCH WITH AND OUR KIDS PLAY SOCCER WITH; OUR NEIGHBORS. AND THE DEATH OF ONE AFFECTS MANY. WE ARE COMMITTED TO PREVENTING EVERY SINGLE ONE OF THEM. SO THIS SHOWS THE FATALITY RATES, AS WELL AS FATALITIES PRETTY MUCH MIRRORING EACH OTHER IN MOST CASES. WE DID SEE A DROP IN VMT A LITTLE BIT IN SOME AREAS 2020, BUT THAT FATALITY RATE STILL WENT UP. FATALITIES STILL WENT UP AND IT IS ONE OF THOSE THINGS, THOSE LAST TWO YEARS ARE, INDEED, A TREND WE'VE GOT TO GET REVERSED. SO THIS SLIDE HERE PRETTY MUCH SUMMARIZES CONTRIBUTING FACTORS AND THE NUMBER OF FATALITIES AND PERCENT FOR EACH ONE. AND I WILL POINT OUT A CONTRIBUTING FACTOR IS WHAT IS LISTED ON THE CRASH REPORT BY THE INVESTIGATING LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCY. AND ONE THING YOU WILL NOTICE IS THOSE NUMBER FATALITIES DON'T ADD UP TO WHAT OUR TOTAL WAS FOR THE STATE. AND THOSE PERCENT FATALITIES DO NOT ADD UP TO 100%. YOU WILL NOTICE THAT A LOT OF CRASHES CAN HAVE MULTIPLE CONTRIBUTING FACTORS, LIKE SPEED AND D.U.I. BUT WE DO, INDEED, WANT TO HAVE THAT BREAK DOWN TO WHERE WE CAN REALLY KNOW WHERE TO PUT SOME OF OUR FOCUS. SO I REALLY WANT TO HIGHLIGHT THAT MOST OF THESE AREAS ARE INDEED TIED TO DRIVING BEHAVIOR AND ACCOUNTABILITY. WE REALLY NEED AND WANT OUR ROADS TO BE AS FORGIVING AS POSSIBLE. WE WANT OUR SPEEDS TO BE APPROPRIATE. WE WANT OUR SIGNS AND STRAPPING IN GOOD SHAPE. WE WANT OUR SKID NUMBERS TO BE REALLY HIGH. BUT I DON'T THINK WE CAN TURN THIS, THIS AROUND THROUGH ENGINEERING ONLY. WE NEED TO BE REMOVE THE DRIVING BEHAVIOR AND DRIVING ACCOUNTABILITY. I THINK THAT'S WHERE A LOT OF OUR FOCUS NEEDS TO BE. IF WE CAN SOLVE THESE, I THINK WE'RE GOING TO END UP WHERE WE WANT TO BE. SO I'M GOING TO GO INTO A LITTLE MORE DETAIL IN EACH OF THESE AREAS IN THE NEXT FEW SLIDES. AND JUST TRY TO HIGHLIGHT OUR ACTIVITIES TO COMBAT EACH ONE OF THESE. SO IN 2021, 34% OF OUR TOTAL TRAFFIC CRASH FATALITIES IN TEXAS WERE SPEED-RELATED. AND IT IS, INDEED, ONE OF THOSE THINGS, IF IT SHOWS UP ON THAT ACCIDENT REPORT AS EITHER, FAILURE TO CONTROL SPEED, UNSAFE SEAT, SPEED, OR SPEEDING OVER THE LIMIT, WHERE IT ENDS UP IN THAT NUMBER, SO THIS TREND PRETTY MUCH MATCHES THE STATEWIDE INCREASE. AS YOU CAN SEE, IF WE CAN ELIMINATE FATALITIES ASSOCIATED WITH SPEED, WE'RE PRETTY MUCH ELIMINATING A THIRD OF THEM OUT THERE AND IT SURE IS GOING TO GET US A LOT CLOSER TO WHERE WE NEED TO BE. SO GETTING TO ZERO, I'M CONVINCED, IS A WHOLE LOT EASIER, IF WHEN YOU BREAK IT DOWN TO AREAS JUST LIKE THIS, TO KNOW WHERE TO ATTACK AND SEE WHERE THE MAJOR EMPHASIS AREAS SHOULD BE. SO WE FOCUS MORE ON SPEED IN OUR PROCESS TO MAKE IMPROVEMENT. BASED ON INCREASED FATALITIES DUE TO RISKY BEHAVIORS OUT THERE. SO WE CONTINUE TO INCORPORATE SAFETY FACTORS AND DETERMINING SPEED LIMITS, FOR SPEED ZONE PROCESS DOES ALLOW US TO TAKE IN SEVERAL SAFETY FACTORS, SUCH AS THE ROADWAY IS NARROW, HAS LOTS OF CURVES, BAD GEOMETRY, CRASH HISTORY, LACK OF SHOULDERS. WE HAVE STARTED TO UTILIZE A NEW NCHRP, WHICH IS A FEDERAL RESEARCH PROGRAM. SPEED LIMIT SCORE -- SPEED LIMIT SETTING TOOL. WE COMPARE IT TO OUR PROCESS. IT SURE ALLOWS US TO GET A DOUBLECHECK AND Y'ALL MAY NOT KNOW, BUT IN THE LAST 24 MONTHS, THE COMMISSION HAS APPROVED 180 REGULATORY SPEED LIMIT REDUCTIONS. LAST YEAR THE EFFORTS TO REDUCE SPEED AND PROVIDE PUBLIC AWARENESS, WE PLACED 77 BILLBOARDS STATEWIDE AS PART OF OUR SPEED CAMPAIGN. WE ALSO PROVIDED 30-SECOND RADIO SPOT ON SPEEDING, BOTH IN ENGLISH AND IN SPANISH. WE CONTINUE TO PUSH SPEED CAMPAIGNS USING BILLBOARDS, RADIO, SOCIAL MEDIA, PRETTY MUCH ANY WAY WE CAN REACH FOLKS. WE HAVE, INDEED, WORKED WITH 85 DIFFERENT LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCIES ACROSS THE STATE. ALL OF THAT TOOK PLACE PRETTY MUCH LAST JUNE IN THE OPERATION WE CALLED OPERATION SLOWDOWN IN A CAMPAIGN WITH OUR LAW ENFORCEMENT PARTNERS. ADDITIONALLY, WE ARE CURRENTLY REVIEWING, APPROXIMATELY, 2,000 MILES OF 75 MILES PER HOUR TWO LANE ROADWAYS WITH NO SHOULDERS IN AN EFFORT TO REDUCE SOME OF THOSE TO 70 MILES PER HOUR. ADDITIONAL RESOURCE ON SETTING SPEED LIMITS IS GOING ON RIGHT NOW IN A COUPLE OF FEDERAL TESTS. AND WE HAVE, INDEED, PARTICIPATED IN SOME OF THAT NATIONAL RESEARCH THAT'S ONGOING. ALSO, INCORPORATING TRAFFIC CALMING INTO OUR DESIGNS ON PROJECTS WITH THE USE OF SOME INNOVATIVE INTERSECTIONS LIKE ROUNDABOUTS AND DIVERGING INTERCHANGES. THOSE HAVE, INDEED, PROVEN TO REDUCE HIGH SPEED RIGHT ANGLE CRASHES. SO A LOT OF OUR DISTRICTS SPEND A LOT OF TIME RESEARCHING CRASH REPORTS. THIS IS AN EXAMPLE OF ONE HERE. AND THIS IS SUBMITTED BY THE RESPONDING LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCY. SO THIS IS AN EXAMPLE THAT IS JUST SAD. SO YOU HAD A SOUTHBOUND VEHICLE HERE MAKE A LEFT TURN IN FRONT OF A NORTHBOUND VEHICLE. TWO INTERESTING THINGS ABOUT THE NORTHBOUND VEHICLE, YOU'LL SEE THAT UNDERLINE RED PART, IT WAS, INDEED, TRAVELING 90 MILES PER HOUR IN A 45 MILES PER HOUR POSTED SPEED ZONE. AND THE DRIVER OF UNIT 1 HAD A BLOOD ALCOHOL CONTENT OF 0.1 -- OF 0.144. SO COUPLE OF DIFFERENT ISSUES GOING ON HERE THAT CAUSED THIS. AND OUR LAW ENFORCEMENT FOLKS DO A REALLY GOOD JOB DOING THE INVESTIGATIONS ON THIS. I REALLY LIKE IT FOR IT. IT JUST SAYS IN THE LINE HAD UNIT 1 BEEN TRAVELING SPEED LIMIT UNIT 2 WOULD HAVE COMPLETED A TURN AND THE CRASH WOULD NOT HAVE OCCURRED. THREE FATALITIES IN THIS INSTANCE RIGHT HERE. IT IS ONE OF THE THINGS DISTRICTS SPEND LOTS OF TIME READING THESE AND TRYING TO DETERMINE WHAT WE CAN DO TO MAKE IT BETTER. EVEN IN A SITUATION LIKE THIS, WE'LL STILL GO OUT THERE AND CHECK THE SIGNS, AND TRAP, AND CHECK THE SCHEDULE, AND MAKE SURE 45 IS THE RIGHT SPEED LIMIT AND THOSE ZONES ARE RIGHT. IT IS SITUATIONS LIKE THIS THAT I'M CONVINCED WE'RE NOT GOING TO BE ABLE TO ENGINEER OUR WAY OUT OF. IT IS GOING TO TAKE OTHER EFFORTS THROUGH OUR CAMPAIGNS. SO IN 2021, 30% OF ALL TOTAL TRAFFIC CRASH FATALITIES IN TEXAS WERE D.U.I.-RELATED. SO THIS INCLUDES ANYTHING INVOLVING ALCOHOL AND DRUGS. WE DID SEE THE SAME TREND FOR TOTAL FATALITIES THE LAST TWO YEARS. IT STILL FOLLOWS THAT DIP DOWN AND THAT DIP BACK UP. THIS ALSO MIRRORS THE NATIONWIDE TREND FOR THE SAME TIMEFRAME. AND THIS IS GOING TO REQUIRE EFFORT ON OUR PART JUST TO ENCOURAGE DRIVERS TO USE BETTER JUDGMENT WHEN GETTING BEHIND THE WHEEL. SO WE HAVE, AND WILL CONTINUE THE IMPAIRED DRIVING COME PAIN. WE HAVE NUMEROUS EVENTS -- CAMPAIGN. WE HAVE NUMEROUS EVENTS THROUGHOUT THE YEAR TO FOCUS ON DIFFERENT EVENTS AND AGES. YOUNG AND HIGH SCHOOL AND COLLEGE AND JUST ABOVE TO TARGET EACH SPECIFIC AUDIENCE. ALCOHOL AND DRUG MEASURES WE DID 76 GENERAL GRANTS IN A STATEWIDE IMPAIRED DRIVING CAMPAIGN FOR OVER $23 MILLION IN THIS EMPHASIS AREA. ON STEP GRANS AND IMPAIRED DRIVING MOBILIZATIONS WE DID 164 ENGAGEMENTS, TOTALING A LITTLE OVER $14 MILLION. WE ALSO HAVE AN IMPAIRED DRIVING SIMULATOR AND DRUNK GOGGLES WHICH ARE TOOLS TO SHOW THE EFFECTS OF PEOPLE OF ALL AGES WHAT THE EFFECTS OF DRINK DRIVING ARE. WE DO HAVE A STATEWIDE GRANT CALLED WATCH YOUR BACK, WHICH GOES TO SCHOOLS, AND IT PRETTY MUCH TEACHES TEXANS ABOUT THE DANGERS OF ALCOHOL AND DRUG MISUSE INCLUDING BINGE DRINK AND ALCOHOL POISONING AND AS WELL AS THE DANGERS ASSOCIATED WITH DRUNK DRIVING. SO LAST YEAR, CRASHES INVOLVING UNRESTRAINED OCCUPANTS RESULTED IN THE OVER 1200 FATALITIES. SO THAT'S 27% OF THE TOTAL CRASHES IN TEXAS. AND YOU CAN SEE FROM THOSE NUMBERS AT THE TOP, 2021 WAS THE FIRST YEAR IN THE LAST SIX THAT WE HAVE GOTTEN BELOW A RECORDED SEAT BUILT USAGE OF 90%. AND IN 2021, 46% OF ALL VEHICLE OCCUPANTS KILLED IN VEHICLE CRASHES WERE SEAT BELT UNRESTRAINED. SO LET ME JUST SHARE THIS SO WE HAD JUST 10% OF THE FOLKS RECORDED NOT SEAT BELTED. BUT THAT 10% NOT SEAT BELTED ENDED UP BEING ALMOST HALF OF OUR FATALITIES. IT IS ONE OF THOSE THINGS, ANY TIME I GET A CHANCE TO SHARE PERSONAL SAFETY MESSAGE I THINK I TIMED MYSELF IT TAKES LESS THAN FOUR SECONDS TO PUT A SEAT BELTED ON. THAT COULD BE THE MOST IMPORTANT FOUR SECONDS OF YOUR DAY GETTING THAT BELT BUCKLED UP. I'M CONVINCED THE MORE WE CAN RAISE THAT SEAT BELTED USAGE AND THE MORE WE GET THE UNDERSTANDING AND AWARENESS GOING HERE, WE CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE WITH FOLKS. IT JUST SEEMS LIKE TOO SIMPLE. SO TO COMBAT THIS, WE WILL CONTINUE AND INCREASE OUR SEAT BELTED CAMPAIGN USING THE BILLBOARDS, RADIO, SOCIAL MEDIA CAMPAIGNS. WE'VE ALSO ADDED 13 MEDIA TOUR STOPS ACROSS THE STATE, AS WELL AS A USE OF THAT FOR THE SIMULATOR I HOPE YOU ALL HAVE SEEN THAT JUST SHOW WHAT IS KIND OF DAMAGE AN INRESTRAINED BODY WILL DO WHILE ROLLING AROUND IN A VEHICLE. OUR TRAFFIC SAFETY SPECIALIST LOCATED IN EACH DISTRICT INCREASED COMMUNITY OUTREACH ACROSS THE STATE, WHICH INCLUDES YOU CAN SEE THE NUMBERS THERE, 1930 OUTREACH EVENTS, 3140 CAR SEATS INSPECTED. OVER 2200 CAR SEATS DISTRIBUTED AND INSTALLED. WE HAVE HAD LOTS OF PARTNERSHIPS WITH LOCAL LAW ENFORCEMENTS ON THOSE STEP GRANTS JUST FOCUSED ON SEAT BELTED USE. SO, UNFORTUNATELY, PEDESTRIAN FATALITIES ALSO INCREASED IN 2021. AND ACCOUNTED FOR, APPROXIMATELY, 18% OF ALL TRAFFIC FATALITIES. BICYCLE, BICYCLE FATALITIES ACCOUNTED FOR 2%. FOR 2022 BECAUSE THIS PROGRAM CONTINUES TO SEE AN INCREASE, WE ARE PLANNING 20 PEDESTRIAN AND BICYCLE SAFETY GRANTS WORTH ALMOST $7 MILLION. THAT INCLUDES TWO CAMPAIGNS TO EDUCATE AND RAISE AWARENESS ON BIKE AND PED SAFETY. MANY ARE LOCALLY BASED IN THE METROPOLITAN AREAS WHERE A VAST MAJORITY OF THESE FATALITIES ARE OCCURRING. THERE ARE ALSO CLOSE TO $3 MILLION IN OTHER PROGRAMS THAT HAVE BIKE/PEDESTRIAN COMPONENTS, INCREASING THAT ALMOST TO $10 MILLION FOR THOSE 26 GRANTS. SO WE'RE GOING TO CONTINUE TO AND INCREASE PEDESTRIAN AND BICYCLE SAFETY. COMMUNICATION DIVISION HAS BEEN QUITE HELPFUL IN THESE AREAS. WE HAVE FUNDED SYSTEMATIC COUNTER MEASURES TO IMPROVE PEDESTRIAN SAFETY USING CAD 8 FUNDS. THERE IS A BIG INTERDISCIPLINARY EFFORT GOING ON RIGHT NOW GOING ON WITHIN OUR DESIGN ON PROJECTS TO MAKE SURE WE INCLUDE PROJECT DEVELOPMENT THAT INCLUDES BIKEWAY AND PEDESTRIAN DESIGNED AND WE UTILIZE THAT, USING THE STATE OF THE PRACTICE IN BICYCLE AND PEDESTRIAN COMBINATION GUIDELINES. AND THE TxDOT DESIGN DIVISION HAS ALSO ISSUED TxDOT BICYCLE ACCOMMODATION GUIDANCE. THAT ONE CAME OUT LAST YEAR. WE DO HAVE AN UPDATE OF THE NEW BICYCLE/PEDESTRIAN FACILITY SECTION THAT WILL BE UPDATED THIS MONTH. WE ALSO HAVE DONE EXTENSIVE WORK IN COLLABORATION WITH THE BICYCLE AND PEDESTRIAN ADVISORY COMMITTEE AND WE HAVE THE NEXT MEETING SCHEDULED WITH THAT GROUP NEXT WEEK, AS A MATTER OF FACT. SO IN 2020 MOTORCYCLE REGISTRATIONS COMPRISED LESS THAN 2% OF THE VEHICLE MIX IN TEXAS. I'M GOING TO SAY THAT AGAIN. MOTORCYCLES COMBINED -- COMPRISED LESS THAN 2%, BUT THEY ACCOUNTED FOR 11.6% OF THE FATALITIES ON OUR HIGHWAY. AND THAT WENT UP A LITTLE IN 2021 TO 12%. SO FROM '16 TO '19 WE HAD INDEED EXPERIENCED INCREASE IN MOTORCYCLE FATALITIES, IN '21 THE NUMBER INCREASED TO 521. THAT WAS A 7.8 INCREASE IN '20 TO '21. OF ALL OF THESE, YOU'LL SEE THAT NUMBER THERE, 45.5 OF THEM NOT WEARING A HELMET AT THE TIME OF THE CRASH. SO WE ARE, INDEED, DOING PRESS EVENTS. MOTORCYCLE SAFETY CAMPAIGNS. YOU ALL MAY HAVE EVEN SEEN SOME OF OUR CAMPAIGNS ON THE TOPS OF GAS PUMPS AT GAS STATIONS. WE'VE GOT THREE GENERAL GRANTS AND TWO CAMPAIGNS FOR TOTAL OF $2 MILLION INVESTED IN THESE SERIES AND VARIOUS EVENTS PROVIDING MATERIALS TO MOTORCYCLE RIDERS BY SAFETY GEAR AND IMPAIRED RIDING. WE ENCOURAGE THE REGULAR DRIVING PUBLIC TO LOOK TWICE FOR MOTORCYCLES AND SHARE THE ROAD WITH GREATER OUTREACH MATERIALS. Y'ALL MAY HAVE SEEN OUR SIGNS, TOO, WE'VE GOT LOTS OF ROUTES POPULAR TO MOTORCYCLE RIDERS WHERE WE MAKE A SPECIAL SIGN JUST BASICALLY STATING HOW MANY MOTORCYCLE FATALITIES WE'VE HAD ON THOSE EXACT ROUTES. IN 2021, 5% OF OUR TOTAL TRAFFIC CRASH FATALITIES IN TEXAS WERE WORK ZONE RELATED. AS YOU CAN SEE, THIS TREND HERE IS ALSO GOING IN THE WRONG DIRECTION. THREE OF THOSE 244 FATALITIES WERE CONSTRUCTION WORKERS FROM OUR CONTRACTING COMMUNITY. SO APRIL IS WORK ZONE AWARENESS MONTH. LOTS OF ACTIVITIES AROUND THE STATE WHERE WE HIGHLIGHT THE DANGERS OF BEING IN A WORK ZONE. HOW MANY PEOPLE HAVE DIED OR BEEN INJURED. AND HOW MANY DRIVER -- HOW DRIVERS CAN DO BETTER GOING THROUGH THESE WORK ZONES. WHAT WE TELL PEOPLE IS, PAY ATTENTION. PUT YOUR PHONES DOWN. KEEP AN EYE ON THE FLAGGER. AND TO THE ROAD. TRAFFIC CONTROL IN FRONT OF YOU. AND BE PATIENT AS YOU GET THROUGH THE WORK ZONE. SO IT ALSO HELP WITH WORK ZONES WE'VE IMPLEMENTED MAINTENANCE WORK ZONE SPEED LIMIT REDUCTION. RECENT LEGISLATION ALLOWS DISTRICT ENGINEERS TO TEMPORARY REDUCE SPEED LIMITS IN HIGHWAY MAINTENANCE TO INCREASE WORK SAFETY. IN THE LAST TWO YEARS THE COMMISSION APPROVED OVER 700 WORK ZONE SPEED REDUCTIONS FOR WORK ACTIVITY. THE TRAFFIC DIVISION ENSURES TEMPORARY LOWER SPEED LIMITS ARE IMPLEMENTED IN A CONSISTENT MANNER. WORK ZONES NOW IN THE STATE OF TEXAS HAVE A MAXIMUM SPEED LIMIT OF MILES PER HOUR. WE DO, INDEED, USE SAFETY CONTINGENCY FORCE ACCOUNTS IN JUST ABOUT ALL OF OUR CONSTRUCTION PLANS. DISTRICTS ARE USING THESE AS A SAFETY CONTINUE, ONCE YOU GET OUT THERE, YOU MAY INDEED IN THE CONSTRUCTION CONTRACT, FIND SOMETHING THAT CAN BE IMPROVED UPON. THAT TYPICALLY RUNS FROM 2 TO 5 PERCENT. IT IS SET ASIDE TO IMPROVE NOT ONLY THE SAFETY OF TRAVELING PUBLIC GOING THROUGH THE WORK ZONE BUT ALSO THE WORKERS THAT ARE THERE. I DO KNOW FROM TALKING TO OUR CONTRACTING COMMUNITY, THEY MORE THAN MEET US HALFWAY ON THIS. THEY LIKE TO PROTECT THEIR WORKERS WHILE THEY'RE OUT THERE, TOO. AND A LOT OF THE IDEAS THAT WE GET FROM THIS COME FROM OUR CONTRACTING PARTNERS. SO WE ALSO HAVE USED INCREASED WORK ZONE TECHNOLOGIES TO IMPROVE SAFETY. WE'LL GET TO THAT SOME ON THE NEXT SLIDE. AND TRF TRAFFIC SAFETY DIVISION DOES INTEND ON EDUCATING EVERYBODY AND SHARING BEST PRACTICE ON THOSE. WITH THE HELP OF OUR COMMUNICATION DIVISION, WE DO INDEED CONTINUE TO PUSH WORK ZONE SAFETY CAMPAIGNS. SO WE STILL HAVE MORE WORK TO DO HERE. WE ARE WORKING TO INCREASE OUR GUIDANCE AND COORDINATING WORK ZONES WITH OUR LAW ENFORCEMENT PARTNERS. WE'RE GOING TO IMPROVE, WE'RE WORKING TOWARD IMPROVING WHAT WE CALL PRESENCE LIGHTING FOR WORKING AT NIGHT. TO MAKE SURE WE GET THROUGH THAT, WE ARE ALSO, GOT A LOT OF DISTRICTS NOW WORKING ON MAKING SURE NOT ONLY THEY'RE COORDINATING WITH LAW ENFORCEMENT FOR WORK ZONES BUT ALSO MAKING SURE THEY'RE LEAVING SPACE. NOT ONLY FOR THE DPS TO BE STAGED OUTSIDE OF THE WORK ZONE BUT EVEN HAVING SPOTS INSIDE OF THE WORK ZONE FOR THEM TO USE TO PARK OR EVEN PULL FOLKS OVER. WE'RE ALSO WORKING ON MAKING SURE WE HAVE GOOD GUIDANCE ON PEDESTRIAN ROUTES THROUGH OUR WORK ZONES. WORKING WITH DISTRICTS TO MAKE SURE THE DESIGNERS AND CONSTRUCTION STAFF MAKE SURE WE DO PROVIDE SAFE PLACES TO WALK FOR OUR PEDESTRIANS THAT GET THROUGH. SO THAT IS ALL FROM ME FOR NOW. NEXT UP, I WILL TURN IT OVER TO MIKE CHACON FOR MOREUP DATES. >> THANK YOU, LANCE, GOOD AFTERNOON, COMMISSIONERS. ALL RIGHT. SO, WE HAVE IMPLEMENTED NUMEROUS ENGINEERING COUNTER MEASURES TO ENHANCE SAFETY ON THE ROADWAYS. A LOT OF THESE HAVE BEEN TO FOCUS ON ROARED LANE DEPARTURE AND ALSO LANE DEPARTURE AND INTERSECTION IMPROVEMENT AND WIDENING OF NARROW ROADWAYS AND PEDESTRIAN/BICYCLE SAFETY. SOME OF THE ITEMS INCLUDE RUMBLE STRIPS WHICH YOU SEE ON THE TOP, TOP-MIDDLE PICTURE AND TOP RIGHT PICTURE AND WE'VE ALSO DONE MEDIAN BARRIERS CABLES SHOWN ON THE TOP MIDDLE PICTURE AND A LOT OF INTERSECTION IMPROVEMENTS SUCH AS ADDED LEFT TURN LANES AND RIGHT TURN LANES TO GIVE THE DESIGNATED TURN LANES AND THE MOVEMENT CONTINUE THROUGH. WITH THAT, SIGNALIZATION HELPS GIVE PROTECTED TURNS, THINGS OF THAT TYPE OF SCENARIOS. THEN, ALSO, WE'RE ALSO WORKING ON ENHANCING CROSS WALKS. YOU SEE THE LOWER RIGHT HAND PICTURE. A LOT OF PEOPLE REFER TO THAT AS A LADDER CROSS WALK OR CONTINENTAL. THAT'S SOMETHING THAT WE IMPLEMENTED MANY YEARS AGO, BRINGS MORE VISIBILITY TO THE CROSS WALK AND MAKES IT SAFER FOR PEOPLE WALKING. AS WELL AS OUR SEQUENTIAL CHEVRONS WHICH YOU SEE ON THE TOP LEFT PICTURE WHERE IT ADDS LED LIGHTS INTO THE SERVE CHONS AND ENHANCES VISIBILITY FOR DAYTIME AND NIGHTTIME AS WELL. WE'RE ALSO TRYING TO FOCUS MORE ON STRIPING. I'LL GET INTO THAT A LITTLE BIT MORE AS WELL. SO ONE THING WE HAVE BEEN DOING SINCE BACK IN 2011, WE'VE BEEN WORKING, FIRST STARTED THIS EFFORT TO WORK ON WRONG WAY DRIVER INITIATIVES BACK IN 2011 WITH THE SAN ANTONIO DISTRICT AFTER A LAW ENFORCEMENT WAS KILLED BY A DRINK DRIVER WHO WASING THE WRONG WAY ON THE ROADWAYS. WE TEAMED UP WITH LAW ENFORCEMENT IN THE SAN ANTONIO AREA AND T. T.O. AND TxDOT PARTNERS FROM VARIOUS DISTRICTS AND DIVISIONS TO START LOOKING INTO DEVELOPING OF GUIDANCE FOR DISTRICTS. SOON AFTER WE STARTED THIS EFFORT, HOUSTON WAS ALSO GETTING INVOLVED IN THE ARENA, AS WELL AS DALLAS AND FT. WORTH AND ALL OTHER CITIES AS WELL. WHAT WE HAVE IN PLACE RIGHT NOW, INCLUDED REFLECTIVE RED TAPE ON SIGN POST SEEN IN THE LOWER RIGHT HAND PICTURE. WHEN THE DRIVER IS GOING THE WRONG WAY, THAT TAPE IS VISIBLE TO THEM, HOPEFULLY, IF THEY'RE NOT UNDER THE INFLUENCE. THE SAME PICTURE, SEE THE WRONG WAY ARROW POINTING TO THE DRIVER THAT LIGHTS UP IN RED IF THEY'RE DRIVING THE WRONG WAY THAT'S VISIBLE AS WELL. ALSO, STARTING TO OVERSIZE THE WRONG WAY AND DO NOT ENTER SIZE FOR THE RAMPS. FOR THE EXIT RAMPS TO MAKE SURE THEY CAN SEE THAT THEY ARE GOING THE WRONG WAY. BECAUSE IN OUR STATE, WE DO HAVE FRONTAGE ROADS. A LOT OF OTHER STATES DON'T HAVE CONTINUOUS FRONTAGE ROADS LIKE WE DO. WE WANT TO MAKE SURE WE PUT LARGER SIGNS MORE VISIBLE INCLUDING ONE WAY SIGNS. THE OTHER THING WE START TESTING WITH, IS LOWERED SIGNS AS YOU SEE ON THE TOP PICTURE WITH THE TRUCK. FHWA GIVE US THE ABILITY TO POST SIGNS AT THREE-FOOT HEIGHT MOUNT. THAT'S REALLY GOOD WHEN YOU HAVE VERTICAL CURBS AND CERTAIN CONDITIONS WHERE THE SEVEN FOOT WOULD BE TOO HIGH FOR THE LIGHTS TO IT. THAT'S WHERE WE USE THOSE TYPES OF SCENARIOS. WE GOT THAT APPROVED. THE LAST TWO ITEMS LED LIGHTS AROUND THE BORDER OF THE SIGN ALSO SOMETHING WE'VE STARTED TO SEE ACROSS THE STATE TO LIGHT UP AT NIGHT TO BRING VISIBILITY TO THE EXIT RAMP. ALSO, DYNAMIC METHOD SIGNS TO POST MESSAGES. WHENEVER OUR DISTRICTS GET AN ALERT WHETHER IT BE FROM AN OPERATOR THAT'S RUNNING OUR TRAFFIC MANAGEMENT CENTER, OR A CALL FROM A CITIZEN, THEY WILL POST A MESSAGE LIKE YOU SEE UP THERE, SAYING "WARNING WRONG WAY DRIVING REPORTED" AND PUT THAT ON A SPECIFIC CORRIDOR WHERE THE DRIVER IS SPOTTED UNTIL WE'RE ABLE TO IDENTIFY WHERE THAT WRONG WAY DRIVER IS, AND IF WE'RE ABLE TO SPOT IT, WE THEN CALL LAW ENFORCEMENT IMMEDIATELY AND THEY HELP US TO TRY TO TRACK THE DRIVER AND STOP THEM. WE HAVE HAD SEVERAL SUCCESS STORIES WITH THAT. THAT'S ATTRIBUTED TO ALL OF OF THE PEOPLE WHO ARE WORKING ON THIS EFFORT TO STOP THIS. SO HERE ARE SOME TRAFFIC ENGINEERING STANDARD UPDATES THAT WE HAVE BEEN DOING. A LOT OF THESE THINGS ARE PROVEN COUNTER SAFETY MEASURES FROM FHWA. WE HAD ALREADY STARTED IMPLEMENTING A LOT OF THESE BEFORE THEE CAME OUT. SOME OF THESE I WANTED TO TALK ABOUT ALREADY ISSUED OR CURRENTLY WORKING ON. YELLOW REFLECTIVE YELLOW SIGNAL BLACK PLATES ON THE TOP PICTURE THAT ENHANCES VISIBILITY OF VEHICLINGS WITH POWER OUTAGES. IT STILL HIGHLIGHTS THE SIGNAL AND LETS THE PEOPLE KNOW THERE'S A SIGNAL THERE AND GO AHEAD AND STOP BECAUSE OF THE STATE LOU YOU STOP WHEN THE TRAFFIC IS OUT FOR A SIGNAL. YOU HEARD LANCE TALK ABOUT THE LEARNING ABILITY NOW WE CAN SIGN FOR MAINTENANCE ACTIVITIES AS WELL WITH THE D.E. AUTHORITY. ALSO TALKED A LITTLE BIT ABOUT THE CROSS WALK PAVEMENT MARKINGS. HOW WE DO THE HIGH VISIBILITY. THE OTHER THING THAT WE DID IS, LAST LEGISLATIVE SESSION, TEXAS USED TO BE A YIELD TO PEDESTRIAN STATE. NOW WE'RE A STOP FOR PEDESTRIAN STATE. SO THAT'S THE NEWEST THING WE'RE DOING NOW. WE'RE CHANGING THOSE SIGNS OUT. WE'VE ALSO DONE SOME WORK ON THE GORES. GORES ARE THE POINT OF CONTACT ON THE FREEWAY WHERE YOU'RE EXITING AND YOU SEE THE GORE SIGN TO EXIT AND WE PUT PAYMENT TO ENHANCE THE AREA AND THOSE SIGNS ARE HIT WITH THE PEOPLE TRYING TO EXIT THE LAST SECOND AND WE TRY TO HIGHLIGHT THAT AREA. ALSO, A LOT OF RUMBLE STRIPS TRYING TO FILL IN THE GAP WHERE WE NEED EDGE LINE AND CENTER LINE RUMBLE STRIPS TO AVOID THE HEAD-ON COLLISIONS OR RUN-OFF-THE-ROAD CRASHES. YOU HEARD FROM LANCE HOW WE'RE IMAPPROVALLING SAFETY IN THE CONSTRUCTION ZONES PART OF THE UPDATE AS WELL. CURRENTLY, WE DO HAVE SOME DRAFT STANDARD SHEETS OUT RIGHT NOW TO DO A WIDER EDGE LINE AND CENTER LINE TO GO TO SIX INCH. THE LOWER PICTURE SHOWS A SIX-INCH EDGE LINE WE HAVE IN THE COMMENT AND REVIEW PERIOD RIGHT NOW WITH THE TxDOT PERSONNEL. THE OTHER THING WE'RE LOOKING AT DOING IS PROVIDING CENTER LINE BUTCH OF -- BUFFERS IN THE CENTER LINE. WE WANT TO SEE HOW TO INCREASE THE BUFFER SPACE TO PROVIDE MORE SPACE FOR THE VEHICLES COMING IN THE OPPOSITE DIRECTION. AS FAR AS SAFETY, WHAT ARE WE DOING TO ADDRESS SAFETY BESIDES THE COUNTER MEASURES WE SAW? WE HAVE HAD ANNUAL PLANNING DISTRICTS TWO YEARS WITH EACH DISTRICT. THIS YEAR IS THE THIRD YEAR. THE BIG FOCUS FOR DISTRICTS TO POINT OUT WHAT ARE THEY SEEING IN THE AREA BASED ON THE CRASH DATA IN THEIR LOCAL AREAS. WHAT DO WE NEED TO FOCUS ON? AND HOW CAN THEY ACCOMPLISH ROAD TO ZERO WITHIN THEIR DISTRICT? PART OF THESE PLANS OUTLINE NOT ONLY PROJECTS THAT THEY'RE WORKING ON, BUT UNFUNDED PROJECTS THEY PLAN TO PUT ON A LIST. SO FOR FUTURE PROJECTS LIKE WE CAN START FUNDING AS THEY IDENTIFY THESE TYPE OF PROJECTS. PART OF THE HIGHWAY SAFETY PROGRAM, HSIP, WE REVISED THE WHOLE PROGRAM WHICH ALLOWS US TO PROVIDE FUNDING FOR DISTRICTS. THIS PROGRAM IS SPECIFICALLY TO ADDRESS FATALITIES AND SERIOUS INJURIES. DISTRICTS WHAT WE DO, GIVE THEM THE MONEY BASED ON THEIR DATA AND WHAT THEY HAVE WITH 2% DEVICE TARGET IN FATALITIES AND SERIOUS INJURIES IN THIS DISTRICT. THE PROJECTS TIE TO THE ANNUAL DISTRICT SAFETY PLANS AS WELL. ALSO, AS YOU ALL KNOW, YOU AS A TRANSPORTATION COMMISSION DID AUTHORIZE $600 MILLION FOR US FOR FISCAL YEAR '21 TO ADDRESS SAFETY AND A LOT OF THAT ADDRESSED FOR ROADWAY SAFETY AND PEDESTRIAN SAFETY AND TECHNOLOGY TO ADDRESS ANY OF THOSE THREE AREAS, AS WELL. WE ALREADY TOUCHED ON PROPOSED CATEGORY 11 SAFETY FUNDS PROPOSED FOR LATER ON IN THE '23 UTP. AS ALWAYS, WE'LL CONTINUE TO MONITOR ALL OF THESE LOCATIONS WHERE WE'VE IMPLEMENTED THESE SAFETY COUNTER MEASURES. AND WE'RE GOING TO MONITOR POST-CRASH DATA TO SEE WHAT KIND OF EFFECTS WE'RE GETTING WITH THE COUNTER MEASURES WE INSTALLED. LATER ON THIS YEAR WE'LL HAVE A NEW STRATEGIC HIGHWAY SAFETY PLAN. THAT'S THE STATE HIGHWAY PLAN ON WHAT EMPHASIS AREAS WE NEED TO FOCUS ON. IT'S NOT JUST TxDOT'S PLAN, BUT THE WHOLESALE. WE HAVE LOCAL PARTNERS AND SAFETY ADVOCATES TO PARTICIPATE IN THIS TO IDENTIFY THAT INFORMATION. SO SOME OTHER THINGS THAT WE HAVE BEEN WORKING ON INTERNALLY IN TxDOT. WE'VE BEEN WORKING ON A LOT OF DASHBOARDS. AS YOU KNOW WE HAVE A LOT OF CRASH DATA WE GET FROM LAW ENFORCEMENT. THE TOP LEFT IS SHOWING A HEAT MAP. AND THAT IS FOUR YEARS WORTH OF DATA. AND SO THAT'S SHOWING YEARS '22, '21, '20, AND '19. WHAT THAT'S ACTUALLY SHOW SOMETHING YOUR FATAL CRASHES. THAT IS WHAT THAT TOP HEAT MAP IS SHOWING. ON THE LOWER RIGHT, THAT IS SHOWING 10 YEARS WORTH OF DATA FOR VARIOUS EMPHASIS AREAS. THE THING ABOUT THE LOWER RIGHT TABLE YOU CAN GO IN THERE AND SPECIFICALLY SPECIFIC PROJECTS ON THE TxDOT SYSTEM OR OFF SYSTEM IF CITY OR COUNTY ROADS AND ALSO LOOK AT DISTRICT-SPECIFIC. YOU COULD ALSO LOOK AT WHETHER YOU WANT TO LOOK AT FATALITY-SPECIFIC CRASHES OR ALL CRASHES. AND IN THOSE AREAS, YOU HAVE DIFFERENT EMPHASIS AREAS TO FOCUS ON:NOT JUST ENGINEERING BUT ALSO BEHAVIORAL. IN THIS ONE SINGLE RUN OFF THE ROAD CRASH, WE HAVE DISTRACTED, WE HAVE D.U.I. ALCOHOL, WE HAVE DRUGS AND PEDESTRIAN AND SAFETY AND MOTORCYCLES SHOWN ON THE TABLES. IT'S GREAT FOR DISTRICTS TO PINPOINT WHAT AREAS ARE OCCURRING IN THEIR AREA AND START DEVELOPING PLANS AND PUT THEM INTO THE DISTRICT SAFETY PLANS AS WELL AS ADDRESSING HOTSPOT AREAS THAT THEY ARE SEEING. THIS IS SHOWING CURRENTLY OUR EFFORTS TO EXPAND OUR DYNAMIC MESSAGE BOARDS. THOSE ARE THE DIGITAL BOARDS YOU SEE ON THE HIGHWAY AS WELL AS ALL OF OUR CAMERAS ACROSS WHAT WE CALL OUR TIER 1 ROADWAYS. TIER 1 ROADWAYS ARE THE ONES YOU SEE HIGHLIGHTED ON THE LEFT MAP. THOSE ARE ALL OF THE MAJOR CORRIDORS THROUGHOUT THE STATE OF TEXAS AND WE'RE TRYING TO FILL IN THE GAPS THROUGHOUT THE ROADWAY AND ENSURE NOT ONLY CAMERAS ON THE ROADS, THOSE CAMERAS ARE THE EYES FOR US TO SEE WHAT KIND OF CONGESTIONS OR CRASHES MAY BE OCCURRING, BUT THEY'RE ALSO BENEFICIAL DURING EMERGENCY OPERATIONS, SUCH AS SNOW AND ICE EVENTS OR HURRICANES OR EVEN WILDFIRES AND SEE WHAT'S HAPPENING ON THE ROADWAYS AND ONCE WE SEE THAT ON THE CAMERAS WE CAN PUT MESSAGES ON THE DYNAMIC MESSAGE SIGN TO GIVE INFORMATION TO THE MOTORISTS TO PROVIDE ADEQUATE TIME TO GET OFF THE ROADWAY OR FIND ALTERNATE ROUTE OR THEY'RE GOOD TO CONTINUE DOWN THE ROAD DEPENDING ON WHAT'S HAPPENING. THEN, WE HAVE A TRAFFIC MANAGEMENT CENTER. IN THERE, MULTIPLE FOLKS FROM TxDOT AND SOMETIMES YOU HAVE LAW ENFORCEMENT FOLKS. ALLOWS THEM TO SEE LIVE, FROM A VIDEO WALL, EVERY CAMERA IN THAT DISTRICT. WHAT'S HAPPENING ON THE ROADWAYS. AGAIN, THIS IS TO HELP THEM EASE CONGESTION OR GET CRASHES OFF THE ROADWAYS. WE'RE DOING A NEW TOOL RIGHT NOW, CALLED CLEAR. WE'VE BEEN WORKING WITH I.T.D. AND THIS GIVES US THE ABILITY TO PUT ALL OF OUR CAMERAS INTO A VIDEO WALL, CALLED CLARIS (PH.) YOU'LL BE ABLE TO SEE FROM YOUR LAPTOP OR FROM YOUR PHONE. WE'VE BEEN ABLE TO UTILIZE THIS OVER THE PAST COUPLE OF YEARS AND TESTED OUT WITH SEVEN DISTRICTS. WE NOW HAVE PLANS TO ROLL OUT ALL 25 DISTRICTS OVER THE NEXT TWO CAREERS. AGAIN, ANOTHER GREAT TOOL TO BE IN OUR HANDS TO VISUALLY SO WHAT'S HAPPENING ON OUR ROADWAYS AT ANY TIME. HERE'S ANOTHER GREAT TECHNOLOGY PIECE THAT WE'VE BEEN WORKING ON AS WELL. VERY SIMILAR TO AN AMBER ALERT FOR YOUR PHONE. THIS ONE IS CALLED INREXHEP ALERTS. WHAT THIS IS ALLOWS US TO PUT A GEOFENCE AROUND A ROADWAY WHEN WE'RE GOING TO HAVE A ROADWAY LANE CLOSURE FOR FOUR HOURS OR MORE. IN THIS PARTICULAR CASE SHOWING AUSTIN A GEOFENCE AROUND I35 WITH THE GRAW ISH BLACK KET DOWN THE MIDAPPROXIMATELY WHEN WE ESTABLISH A HELP ALERT THE CAR GETS INTO AREA, GEOFENCE AREA, THEY'LL GET AN ALERT LIKE THE RIGHT-HAND SIDE OF THE PHONE. DOESN'T GIVE THEM ADDITIONAL INFORMATION JUST LETTING THEM KNOW THERE'S A CRASH OR 0 CLOSURE. GIVES THEM ADD QUITE TIME TO MAKE DECISIONS BASED ON WHAT'S HAPPENING AHEAD OF THEM. SO AGAIN, THIS IS VALUABLE INFORMATION TO GIVE MORTGAGORRISTS AHEAD OF WHAT CAN BE A QUEUING CONDITION ON THE ROADWAY. THIS IS SOMETHING WE'RE ALSO VERY PROUD OF. WE WERE AWARDED A GRANT, TEXAS WAS, ALONG WITH THREE OTHER STATES, THAT INCLUDES CALIFORNIA, ARIZONA, AND NEW MEXICO. THIS WAS, APPROXIMATELY, $7 MILLION GRANT. WE'VE BEEN WORKING COLLABORATION WITH SEVERAL DIVISIONS. AND DISTRICTS TO DEPLOY THIS EFFORT. WHAT IT IS, IT IS WHAT THESE THREE OTHER STATES IN TEXAS, THIS IS GOING TO COVER THE ENTIRE I-10 CORRIDOR THROUGH ALL FOUR STATES. THE WHOLE PURPOSE BEHIND THIS IS TO IMPROVE SAFETY FOR TRUCKERS. AS YOU ALL KNOW, TRUCKERS ARE REQUIREMENTS WHERE THEY HAVE TO STOP AND REST OVER A CERTAIN AMOUNT OF TIME AFTER THEY'VE BEEN DRIVING. WHAT WE HAVE SEEN OVER THE YEARS IS TRUCKERS HAVE TO SOMETIMES THEY CAN'T FIND REST STOP AREAS OR FIND A PARKING SPOT AND THEY PARK ON THE SIDE OF THE ROAD ON THE SHOULDER. THAT BECOMES A SAFETY HAZARD NOT ONLY FOR THEM BUT FOR MOTORISTS. TO ENHANCE THE SAFETY OF THAT, WITH THIS PROJECT, WHAT WE'RE DOING THAT SIGN ON THE LOWER RIGHT HAND CORNER WILL NOTIFY TRUCKERS IN ADVANCE THE NEXT THREE REST AREAS WHERE THEY'LL BE ABLE TO PARK AND SAFELY PARK AND GET SOME REST. WITH THAT, IT IS ALSO GOING TO TELL THEM HOW MANY PARKING SPACES ARE OPENED IN THOSE REST AREAS THAT ARE COMING UP. SO CURRENTLY, WE'RE IN THE PROCESS OF DOING THAT RIGHT NOW. TEXAS DOES HAVE THE LARGEST AMOUNT OF THE FOUR STATES THAT ARE PUTTING THESE SYSTEMS IN. WE'LL HAVE 18 OF THESE SIGNS PUT UP. WE ALSO DID SUBMIT ANOTHER GRANT IN HOPES WE COULD EXPAND THIS PROJECT TO THE I-35/I-45/I20 CORRIDORS. WE HAVEN'T HEARD THAT,I YET, BUT WE'RE HOPEFUL SO WE CAN CONTINUE THIS PROJECT. THE LAUNCH DATE FOR THIS IS 2023. LAST BUT NOT LEAST WHAT I'LL BE TALKING ABOUT TODAY ABOUT THE PROJECT SAFETY SCORING TOOL. THIS IS SOMETHING WE'VE BEEN WORKING WITH WITH THE DESIGN DIVISION. THIS TOOL IS CREATED AS A SIMPLE STRAIGHTFORWARD SPREADSHEET. IT BRINGS AWARENESS OF HOW DESIGN CHANGES CAN AFFECT SAFETY. IT IS MAINLY TO ASSIST A DESIGNER IN MAKING A SAFETY-DRIVEN DECISION DURING THE PROJECT DESIGN PROCESS. IT ALSO INCREASES AWARENESS OF HOW DESIGN CHANGES CAN AFFECT SAFETY. AND IT ALSO ALLOWS THEM TO BE ABLE TO EVALUATE HOW DIFFERENT DESIGN CAN AFFECT SAFETY. WHAT THAT MEANS THEY CAN GO IN AND SAY WHAT HAPPENS IF NO SOUNDERS VERSUS FOUR-LANE SHOULDER AND HOW DOES IT AFFECT THE ROAD? THIS TOOL IS NOT INTEND FOR FINAL DECISION-MAKING TOOL. YOU HAVE TO USE ENGINEERING JUDGMENT. AS YOU SEE ON THE SECOND BULLET IS NOT SUBSTITUTES FOR SECOND JUDGMENT. THIS IS RELEASED FOR RURAL TWO LANE AND RURAL MULTILANE HIGHWAYS. TxDOT IS REQUIRING ALL RURAL PROJECTS TO REPORT A SAFETY SCORE FOR EXISTING UNCINAL CONDITIONS. ANOTHER SIMILAR TOOL IS CURRENTLY DEVELOPED RIGHT NOW FOR URBAN INTERSECTIONS AS WELL. SO WITH THAT, I WILL TURN IT BACK TO LANCE TO TALK ABOUT THE MPO SAFETY TASK FORCE. >> THANK YOU, MICHAEL. SO, THE PURPOSE OF THE SAFETY TASK FORCE IS THE SAME PURPOSE WE ALL HAVE, IT IS TO REDUCE AND ELIMINATE FATALITIES. SO WE SEARCH WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT ALL OF OUR GROUPS ARE PUTTING THE SAME FOCUS ON EVERY PROJECT, ON EVERY DOLLAR, ON EVERY ROAD, AND IN EVERY COMMUNITY; SPECIFICALLY, WHEN IT COMES TO A LOT OF OUR SHARED CATEGORIES LIKE 5, 7, 8. CERTAINLY, LIKE HAVING ALL OF THE PLAYERS IN THE SAME ROOM, HAVING LOTS OF FOLKS WITH A SUIT AT THE TABLE CERTAINLY HELPS IMPROVE OUR FOCUS, AS WELL AS OUR VISION. AND WE'VE HAD LOTS OF GOOD SUCCESS IDENTIFYING NEW SOLUTIONS. SO IT IS GOING TO TAKE MORE EFFORT TO GET WHAT WE NEED DONE, WHAT WE'VE BEEN DOING THE LAST COUPLE OF YEARS HASN'T QUITE BEEN PRODUCING THE RESULTS WE WANT. CERTAINLY GOING TO HAVE TO PUT MORE FOCUS INTO THAT. WE HAVE AVENUE ALREADY HAD GREAT IDEAS -- WE HAVE ALREADY HAD GREAT IDEAS AND BEST PRACTICES BY ALL INVOLVED AND LOOKING FORWARD TO PRODUCING MORE AND DELIVERING ON MORE. HERE ARE THE MEMBERS OF THE TASK FORCE, INCLUDES VARIOUS MEMBERS. MPOs. TxDOT FROM ACROSS THE STATE. WE'VE GOT TWO COMMISSIONERS ON THIS THING. I THINK IT CERTAINLY SHOWS THE IMPORTANCE OF IT. REALLY APPRECIATION THE LEADERSHIP AND GUIDANCE WE GOT OUT OF COMMISSIONER NEW AND COMMISSIONER RYAN. WE'VE GOT GREAT REPRESENTATION ON THE MPO SIDE. LOTS OF GREAT MINDS ON THAT MPO GROUP. LOTS OF HORSEPOWER THERE. REALLY GOOD MIX OF SIZES ON MPOs THEY'VE GOT DIFFERENT PERSPECTIVE AND DIFFERENT FUNDING AND SEE DIFFERENT ISSUES IN THEIR AREA AND WE ALSO HAVE GOOD GEOGRAPHIC ON THE MPO SIDE. THE TxDOT SIDE LOTS OF HEAVY HITTERS ON THE LIST. IT REALLY SHOWS. IT GETS A LOT OF SUPPORT. GOOD COMBINATION OF LEADERSHIP AND SUBJECT MATTER EXPERTISE. WE DO, INDEED, MEET TOGETHER ONCE A MONTH. THERE ARE TIMES WE HAVE ACTUALLY MET AS INDIVIDUAL HALVES ON ALL OF THAT TO SOLVE CERTAIN ISSUES OR GET SOME HOMEWORK. BUT THIS IS A GREAT GROUP. MAYBE THE BEST WORKGROUP I HAVE EVER WORKED ON. I LOVE THE FACT THAT EVERYBODY ON THIS LIST IS SAFETY-FOCUSED. AND THEY ARE RESULTS-ORIENTED. AND I CAN, INDEED, ATTEST TO EVERYBODY ON THAT GROUP IS COMMITTED TO GETTING THESE NUMBERS TURNED AROUND. AND TO HEAR MORE SPECIFICS, I'M GOING TO NOW TURN IT OVER TO MICHAEL MORRIS. >> MR. CHAIRMAN, COMMISSIONERRINGS, MR. WILLIAMS, IT IS VERY NICE TO BE WITH YOU AND THANK YOU FOR YOUR PUBLIC SERVICE. THANK YOU FOR THE OPPORTUNITY TO BROADEN THE FAMILY. TO AGGRESSIVELY IMPROVE THE SITUATION. COMMISSIONER RYAN AND NEW, THANK YOU FOR SIX MONTHS OF CONCERTED EFFORT ON YOUR PART TO GET US TO THIS PARTICULAR LOCATION IN OUR PRESENTATION TODAY AND THE OPPORTUNITY TO BE WITH YOU. IF WE LOOK AT THIS PATH FORWARD, I WANT TO, FIRST, FOCUS ON THE WHAT IT IS WE'RE GOING TO DO. THE THREE "E"'S ARE APPARENTLY VERY CLEAR TO YOU BY THIS PARTICULAR POINT. I'M KEEPING THE SEVEN COUNTERING CONTRIBUTING FACTORS SO YOU CAN FOLLOW THIS. IT'S PRETTY AGGRESSIVE IN THE ENGINEERING ENFORCEMENT AND EDUCATION. WE'VE REVIEWED OVER 700 COUNTER MEASURES AND WE'RE DEVELOPING COMPREHENSIVE TABLES OF TxDOT AND WHAT THE GOVERNMENT IS IMPLEMENTING AND WHAT TTI DID IN THE BEFORE AND AFTER STUDY AND THOSE IMPLEMENTED BY THE METROPOLITAN PLANNING ORGANIZATIONS OR URBAN AREAS ACROSS THE STATE. MY RECOMMENDATION AS A TASK FORCE MEMBER IS WE SHOULD AGGRESSIVELY PURSUIT EFFECTIVENESS OF WHAT IT IS WE'RE DOING. MULTIPLE ORGANIZATIONS IMPLEMENTING MULTIPLE STRATEGIES TO ATTACK THIS PROBLEM. I THINK, EVENTUALLY, WE'LL FOCUS ON THE EFFICIENCY OF WHAT IT IS WE'RE DOING. BUT IF WE'RE GOING TO TURN IT AROUND, I THINK IT'S ALL HANDS ON DECK, ALL TOOLS ACROSS THE ENTIRE STATE. SO WHO IS, WHO IS THOSE COMING FORWARD? EDUARDO CAVO FROM EL PASO OUR TASK FORCE IS HERE TODAY. I DON'T KNOW IF HE HAS SOMETHING ON YOUR AGENDA FOR TOMORROW. HERE'S A PERSON THAT HAS NOT MISSED ONE OF MY FIVE PRESENTATIONS ON THIS TOPIC IN THE LAST 30 DAYS. THERE'S A WHOLE HOST OF URBAN REGIONS COMMITTED TO THIS PARTICULAR CAUSE. IT CLEARLY IS AN ALL-HANDS. SO WHATEVER ADMINISTRATION CAN DO, OBVIOUSLY THE DISTRICTS, WITH THEIR CLOSE PROXIMITY. WHATEVER INNOVATION CAN COME FROM TxDOT DIVISIONS, WE WELCOME THEIR ASSISTANCE. AND THEN, WE HAVE 23 METROPOLITAN PLANNING ORGANIZATIONS AND A WHOLE HOST OF LOCAL PARTNERS WITHIN EACH OF THOSE ORGANIZATIONS. LOCAL POLICE DEPARTMENTS. CITY AND SHERIFFS. UNIVERSITIES. WHOLE HOST OF DIFFERENT ASSORTMENT OF LOCAL PARTNERS. AND YOU'LL SEE IN THIS PROPOSAL, WE NEED TO GIVE EACH LOCAL AREA THE CHALLENGE TO TURN THIS AROUND. AND GIVE THEM THE ROOM TO DO IT IN THE BEST WAY FOR THAT PARTICULAR SITUATION. SO YOU CAN SEE HERE, AS MPOs, WE PROBABLY HAVE ENGINEERING AND ENFORCEMENT AND EDUCATION, THAT MAY VARY BY SIZE OF THE MPO. AND, OBVIOUSLY, YOU'RE VERY FAMILIAR WITH THE ROLES THAT THE TxDOT CAN PLAY. WHERE ARE WE FOCUSED? WE'RE NOT GOING TO TURN THIS AROUND IF WE'RE NOT FOCUSED EVERYWHERE. SO THE URBAN REGIONS HAVE ITS SHARE OF THE PROBLEM; RURAL AREAS, AS WELL AS YOU GET INTO HIGHER SPEEDS; THEN, WE HAVE TO FOCUS ON OUR INNER CITY ELEMENTS. HOW DO WE REACH OUT TOGETHER AS PARTNERS CONNECTING TECHNOLOGY ACROSS OUR METROPOLITAN REGIONS TO CONNECT THE DALLAS-FT. WORTHS TO THE WACOS AND TEMPLE AND AUSTINS AND STONEIOUS AND LAR RAIDOS, WHATEVER IT MAY BE? -- LAREDO, WHATEVER IT MAY BE. ONE POSSIBLE STRATEGY WE USE IN AIR QUALITY IF YOU'RE FAMILIAR WITH THE OZONE SITUATION IN THE URBAN AREAS IN TEXAS, THIS IS AN EPA FEDERAL RULE IN THE CLEANER ACT, SISTER STATE AGENCY IN THE TEXAS COMMISSION ON ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY. I PRESENT THIS AS AN AIR QUALITY MODEL THAT HAS WORKED IN THE PAST. WHERE SPECIFIC NEAR-TERM TARGETS HAVE TO BE MET OR YOU GET REGULATED INTO AN ADDITIONAL SET OF CONTROL STRATEGIES. THIS HAPPENS TO BE DATA FROM THE DALLAS-FORT WORTH REGION AND YOU CAN SEE HOW THE NUMBER OF EXCEEDENCE S AND SEVERITY HAVE GONE DOWN OVER TIME AND THE COMMISSION MAY NEAR TERM TARGET AND DIFFERENT TARGETS IN DIFFERENT PARTS OF THE STATE DEPENDING ON THE MAGNITUDE OF THE PROBLEM. SO HERE IS AN EXAMPLE THAT I THINK HAS DEMONSTRATED SOME IMPROVEMENT OVER TIME. BUT PLEASE ALSO NOTICE THE SAME RECOIL IS OCCURRING IN AIR QUALITY AS YOU'RE SEEING IN YOUR MOST SAFETY DATA. SO THERE'S, THERE'S THINGS HAPPENING IN SOCIETY THAT ISN'T JUST ABOUT SAFETY. AND JUST ABOUT AIR QUALITY. AND JUST ABOUT OTHER THINGS. WE'RE SEEING IT IN DIFFERENT METRICS. SO DON'T FEEL ALONE WITH REGARD TO THOSE SAFETY ELEMENTS, AS WE STRUGGLE WITH OTHER PUBLIC POLICY ITEMS THAT WE NEED TO DO. I THINK THE TASK FORCE WILL WANT TO REACH OUT TO YOUR TxDOT MARKETING FOLKS. IN OUR REGION DOZENS OF AIR QUALITY STRATEGIES WERE IMPLEMENTED TO TURN THIS AROUND. I WANT TO UNCOVER THE BEST PRACTICES FROM ACROSS THE STATE, GET YOUR MARKETING FOLKS TO GET LOGOS AND ELEMENTS ON IT, DEVELOP THIS -- THIS ROADMAP FOR TECHNOLOGY TRANSFER ACROSS THE WHOLE STATE. HEY, IF YOU'RE NOT IMPLEMENTING THESE BASIC 12 OR THESE BASIC 20 PROGRAMS IN SAFETY, WHY AREN'T YOU? THIS HAPPENS TO BE ALL ABOUT AIR QUALITY, BUT IT IS A BLUEPRINT WE COULD USE IF THE COMMISSION FEELS WE NEED TO START DEVELOPING THIS TECHNOLOGY TRANSFER AND GET THESE BEST PRACTICES. AND ADD TO NOT JUST A PORTFOLIO OF ENGINEERING PROJECTS, BUT A PORTFOLIO OF SAFETY PROJECTS, AS WE PUT THESE PARTNERSHIPS TOGETHER. SO AS WE MOVE FORWARD AND ENGAGING THE STATEWIDE EFFORT ON METROPOLITAN PLANNING ORGANIZATION OVER THE LAST TWO MONTHS, IT IS NOT ONE SIZE FITS ALL. WE HUMBLY ASKING YOU GIVE THE MPOs THE ABILITY TO IMPLEMENT SHORT-TERM OR LONG-TERM FOCUSES. A LOT WANT TO ESTABLISH BOTH AND GET UNDERSTANDING WHERE THE DATA IS TAKING THEM. THE DALLAS-FORT WORTH REGION WILL ESTABLISH A VERY SHORT-TERM FOCUS. THAT DOESN'T MEAN IF SOME OTHER AREA WISHES TO DO IT DIFFERENTLY. LAW ENFORCEMENT AND EDUCATION IS PART OF WHAT THE MPO HAS TO DO AS WE ENGAGE OUR LOCAL PARTNERS AND LOCAL CITIZENS TO BE MORE ADULT WHEN IT COMES TO THE IMPORTANCE OF SAFETY. I THINK THERE'S EARLY STAGES OF SUCCESS. WE'LL HAVE TO BE IN THE LARGER MPOs TO ADOPT ALL THREE E'S AS YOU SAW BEFORE. WE'LL PARTNER WITH THE DISTRICTS TO DO ENGINEERING PROJECTS. SMALLER MPOs MAY BE FOCUSED MORE ON EDUCATION AND REINFORCEMENT AND REACH OUT TO THE LOCAL PARTNERS TO BE ABLE DO THAT. AGAIN, ONE SIZE DOES NOT FIT ALL. YOU SHOULD EXPECT, AS ALREADY IS BEING IMPLEMENTED, THE LARGER MPOs TO BE VERY AGGRESSIVE IN USING ALL THREE E'S, AS ASHBY IS DOIC IN AUSTIN, DALLAS-FORT WORTH AS WELL AS HOUSTON. THE SMALLER MPOs HAS TO LEVERAGE THEIR PARTNERS BUT THEY HAVE GOOD EXPERIENCE WITHIN EACH OF THEIR COMMUNITIES TO REACH OUT AND DEVELOP THOSE PARTICULAR PARTNERSHIPS. WE'RE GOING TO PROPOSE ADDITIONAL MONEY FOR THEM DO IT. I THINK WE NEED A TRACK LESSONS LEARNED AND EVENTUALLY ESTABLISH THESE INTO PART OF MARKETING AND BLUEPRINT AND PORTFOLIO FOR MORE PARTS OF THE STATE. AND AGAIN, IT IS NOT A ONE-AND-DONE SITUATION. SO IF WE'RE SERIOUS ABOUT THIS, WE'RE GOING TO COMMIT TO AN ANNUAL PROGRAM WHERE WE'RE HELD ACCOUNTABLE WITH REGARD TO TURNING THIS AROUND. AND WE'RE MEASURED NOT JUST AGAINST THE FATALITIES AND FATALITY RIGHT IN OUR COMMUNITIES, BUT THE LEVEL OF PORTFOLIO COMMITMENT WITH REGARD TO OUR ACTION-ORIENTED PROGRAMS THAT WE ARE IMPLEMENTING. THE SHORT-TERM AND LONG-TERM FOCUS IS CRITICAL FOR THE MPOs TO BE ENGAGED. SOME ARE EQUIPPED TO MOVE OUT QUICKLY; SOME WILL WANT TO UNDERSTAND THE ISSUE BETTER WITH LESS EXPERIENCE ON SAFETY COUNTER MEASURES. BUT EVERYONE IS GOING TO JUMP INTO THE DEEP END AND AGGRESSIVELY TRY TO MOVE THIS NEEDLE ON BEHALF OF ALL OF OUR CITIZENS AND VISITORS THAT COME TO OUR STATE. WE'VE STARTED ALREADY SO THE MPOs ARE GOING TO SHOW THEIR COMMITMENT WITH PRESS RELEASES AND NEWS ARTICLES ON THE TWO FOCUS AREAS FOR THIS MONTH: DISTRACTED DRIVING AWARENESS MONTH; NATIONAL WORK ZONE SAFETY WEEK. I'VE ASKED THE MPOs IN A RECENT MEETING TO CAPTURE ALL OF THEIR PRESS RELEASES AND CAPTURE THEIR LOCAL NEWS MEDIA AND CAPTURE THIS EFFORT OUT OF THE GATE. IT WILL BE A HAIR DISJOINTED, PROBABLY, BUT AGAIN, IT IS A JUMP IN THE DEEP END AND START TURNING THIS AROUND. THE COMMITTEE WILL ASK EACH MPO RECEIVE $50,000 PER YEAR TO BE ENGAGED IN THIS RESPONSIBLE OVER $1 MILLION STATEWIDE. I DON'T THINK IT'S A LARGE ASK TO MOVE FORWARD. I WANT ACCOUNTABILITY OF ALL MPOs TO BE A PARTNER IN THE ROOM AND MOVE THE NEEDLE ON BEHALF OF THEIR LOCAL COMMUNITIES. THEY WILL BE MOVING EITHER A SAFETY ACTION PLAN, THAT'S NOMENCLATURE FOR NEAR TERM IMPLEMENTATION OF COUNTER MEASURES, MORE COMPREHENSIVE SAFETY PLAN, OR BOTH OF. AGAIN, DALLAS-FORT WORTH IS GOING TO MOVE FORWARD VERY AGGRESSIVE SAFETY ACTION PLAN. I THINK EITHER USE IT OR LOSE IT. I THINK THERE NEEDS TO BE AN ANNUAL REPORT AND MAYBE BOILERPLATE OF THREE-TO-FIVE PAGES TO HELP THE STATE, SUGGESTING ALL 23 MPOs SUBMIT THEIR REPORTS TO OUR OFFICE. WE COULD AGGREGATE THEM INTO LESSONS LEARNED IN TECHNOLOGY TRANSFER AND SUBMIT AN ANNUAL REPORT TO THE STATE OF TEXAS WITH REGARD TO WHAT THE MPOs ARE DOING EVERY YEAR. AND I'M REQUESTING AN ANNUAL SAFETY PROGRAM TO SHARE THOSE ELEMENTS ACROSS THE MPOs AND THE DISTRICTS. NO DIFFERENT THAN WHAT LANCE IS DOING ALREADY WITH HIS ANNUAL PROGRAM OF DISTRICTS. SO MPOs CAN LOOK AT BEST PRACTICES AND SHARE PROGRAMS. AND THEN, WE CAN SHARE THOSE ACROSS OUR COLLEAGUES, THE TxDOT, AND TxDOT CAN SHARE BEST PRACTICES WITH US. I'M SUGGESTING TTI OR PRIVATE COMPANY OR SOMETHING BE RETAINED BY THE STATE. SO EACH OF THESE MPOs DOESN'T HAVE TO GO THROUGH A PROCUREMENT PROCESS TO GET OUTSIDE TECHNICAL EXPERIENCE. BECAUSE SMALLER MPOs MAY NOT BE, HAVE THE SAFETY EXPERTISE YOU WOULD WANT. BUT THEY COULD BUY OURS FROM A PROCURED ENTITY. YOU WOULDN'T HAVE TO PUT MONEY INTO THIS ENTITY; THE MONEY WOULD BE COMING FROM THE $1.2 MILLION AS MPOs COULD PURCHASE HOURS FROM THESE SAFETY EXPERTS TO IMPLEMENT THE PROGRAMS IN EACH OF THEIR PARTICULAR COMMUNITIES. SO IT IS A RETAINER INVESTMENT. AND MAYBE A COST-EFFECTIVE WAY. SO EACH MPO DOESN'T HAVE TO GO THROUGH A PROCUREMENT PROCESS. THE REQUEST IS $1.22 MILLION. THE MPOs WOULD HAVE THIS ACCOUNTABILITY OF BEING ENGAGED AND IMPLEMENTING THE PROGRAMS. IT WOULD BE DESIGNED FOR THEIR LOCAL FOCUS AREAS, WHATEVER IT MAY BE. BECAUSE IT IS A VERY LARGE STATE, VERY DIFFERENT CAUSAL FACTORS IN EACH OF OUR COMMUNITIES, THE DIVERSITY OF THE PERSONS WITHIN OUR STATE HAVE DIFFERENT COMPELLING FACTORS WITH REGARD TO THIS. IT IS A GREAT WAY TO LEVERAGE FUNDS. THAT WAS PART OF THE ORIGINAL CHARGE. IN MY REGION, I'LL BE GOING TO OUR METROPOLITAN PLANNING ORGANIZATION FOR $50 MILLION AS PART OF AN AGGRESSIVE SAFETY PROGRAM. THAT'S A THOUSAND TIMES LEVERAGE OVER YOUR 50,000. AUSTIN AND OTHERS, I CAN'T SPEAK FOR, BUT THE LARGER MPOs ARE IN A SITUATION TO FLEX THEIR CATEGORY 5 AND 7. MAYBE PORTIONS OF THEIR CATEGORY 2. MAYBE A REGIONAL TOLL REVENUE. MAYBE RGC LOCAL FUNDS TO AGGRESSIVELY TURN THIS AROUND. WE HAVE TOLD THE MPOs THAT IF YOU DON'T GET ENGAGED AND MOVE THE NEEDLE, AND PUT THESE PLANS IN ACTION, STEPS TOGETHER, THAT MONEY WOULD BE PUT BACK INTO THE STATE CARVERS. IT IS A WAY -- COFFERS. IT IS WAY TO GREAT THE ACCOUNTABILITY. WHAT WE'RE SAYING TODAY, SAFETY IS EVERYONE'S ISSUE. NOT JUST AN MPO ISSUE. IT IS THE DRIVER OF THE CAR; IT IS THE CHILD IN THE BACKSEAT; IT IS THE PERSON SERVING ALCOHOL; IT IS THE LOCAL POLICE DEPARTMENT AS OUR PARTNER IN IMPLEMENTING THE PROGRAM. WE WOULD LIKE TO PRODUCE AN ANNUAL REPORT, AS A RESULT, ALONG WITH THE ANNUAL WORKSHOP TO MAXIMIZE TECHNOLOGY TRANSFER. AND THEN, IN YEAR TWO, START WORKING ON THE EFFICIENCY OF THE PROGRAM AS WE GET MORE IMPLEMENTATION STRATEGIES ACROSS MORE FOLKS UNDER MORE ENVIRONMENTS, AS WE'RE MOVING AHEAD. SO I WENT BACK AND LOOKED AT THE CHANGES FROM 2019 TO 2021 AND THE INFORMATION THAT LANCE GAVE YOU. THOSE PERCENTAGE CHANGES ARE VERY DIFFERENT. AND I WOULD LIKE TO JUST END ON THIS. THERE'S REALLY TWO THINGS HERE IS, THE MAGNITUDE OF THE COLUMN IN 2021. THESE NUMBERS ARE STAGGERING. AND THEY'RE NOT THE SAME SIZE IN EACH OF THE CONTRIBUTING FACTORS. THEN, THE RATE OF CHANGE OR RECOIL SINCE 19 -- SINCE 2019 ARE NOT THE SAME. I DON'T WANT TO GET TOO FAR INTO THE WEEDS, BUT JUST THREE EXAMPLES. LOOK AT HOW THE D.U.I. NUMBER IS HIGH, BUT IT DID NOT CHANGE SIGNIFICANTLY AS COMPARED TO OTHER CONTRIBUTING FACTORS, 6%. WE NEED TO MINE WHAT TxDOT IS DOING BECAUSE THERE'S MAJOR SUCCESSES IN THOSE OUTREACH AND EDUCATION PROGRAMS THAT NEEDS TO BE TRANSFERRED TO MORE OF US, AS WE IMPLEMENT SIMILAR PROGRAMS WITHIN OUR PARTICULAR REGION. THAT 6% IS A VERY COMPELLING NUMBER IN THE SHADOW OF THOSE OTHER CHANGES. LOOK AT YOUR 43% NUMBER IN WORK ZONES. THE STAFF HERE IN HEADQUARTERS AND THIS COMMISSION HAS AGGRESSIVELY IMPLEMENTED MORE CONSTRUCTION PROJECTS. YOU HAD MORE CONSTRUCTION PROJECTS, YOU HAD MORE CONSTRUCTION WORK ZONES, THIS IS A MEASURE AND UNINTENDED MEASURE OF THE SUCCESS YOU'RE DOING IN IMPLEMENTING PROJECTS ACROSS THIS GREAT STATE. THIS NUMBER HAS TO BE FIXED. BUT SOME OF THE CAUSAL FACTORS MAY BE JUST THE MAGNITUDE OF CONSTRUCTION ZONES THAT WE'RE DOING, AS A RESULT OF US DEALING WITH SAFETY, CONGESTION, AIR QUALITY, AND OTHER PROJECTS IN OUR STATE. AND THE THIRD IS BICYCLE. LOOK AT THE SMALL NUMBER IN THE 2021. BUT LOOK AT THE SIGNIFICANT CHANGE. THIS IS REALLY A REINFORCEMENT MPOs, YOU NEED TO GET LASER FOCUSED ON BICYCLE. AND LANCE COMMENTED ON THAT IN HIS INTRODUCTORY COMMENTS. IT'S BEEN A BUSY SIX MONTHS FOR THE TASK FORCE. IT IS AN HONOR TO WORK WITH LANCE ON THIS EFFORT. AS OUR TECHNICAL CO-CHAIRS RESPONDING TO OUR POLICY COMMISSION CHAIRS. AND I'LL TURN IT BACK OVER TO LANCE FOR THE CLOSE-OUT OF OUR PRESENTATION. AND THANK YOU AGAIN FOR BRINGING THE METROPOLITAN PLANNING ORGANIZATIONS INTO THIS IMPORTANT TOPIC. >> THANK YOU, MICHAEL. SO THAT CONCLUDES OUR PRESENTATION. WE WILL BE GLAD TO ENTERTAIN ANY QUESTIONS. >> YOU HAVE ONE MORE SLIDE? >> THANK YOU, MICHAEL. ALWAYS HELPFUL. >> SO COMMISSIONERS, ARE THERE ANY COMMENTS OR QUESTIONS FOR DIRECTOR SIMMONS? START WITH COMMISSIONER VAUGHN. >> THANK YOU, CHAIRMAN. LANCE, MICHAEL, MICHAEL, THANK YOU VERY MUCH. VERY INFORMATIVE. REALLY EXCITING WORK GOING ON. AND GLAD TO HEAR THAT SO MUCH WORK HAS BEEN DONE IN SUCH A SHORT PERIOD OF TIME. I MAY NOT BE CONNECTING THE DOTS, BUT I HAD A QUESTION ABOUT, YOU KNOW, WE CANNOT ENGINEER 100% REDUCTION IN FATALITIES ON THE ROADWAYS. WE CAN DO A LOT OF THINGS TO GET MOST OF THE WAY THERE, BUT ENFORCEMENT AND EDUCATION IS, YOU KNOW, WE'VE GOT TO HOLD HANDS TOGETHER AND BE PART OF THIS TEAM. I'M NOT SURE HOW MUCH OF THAT THE ENFORCEMENT AND EDUCATION PART ARE INCLUDED IN HERE. I'VE HEARD REFERENCES TO IT, BUT, YOU KNOW, ON YOUR COMMISSIONER COMMITTEE, IT LOOKS LIKE IT IS A TXDOT-SPONSORED COMMITTEE. AND IT IS -- BUT I DON'T SEE, YOU KNOW, DPS SAFETY COMMISSION ON HERE. I DON'T SEE EDUCATORS ON HERE. WHAT ARE WE DOING TO ENSURE NOT ONLY ACCOUNTABILITY WITHIN TxDOT, BUT ALSO HOW DO WE HELP AND TEAM UP WITH THESE OTHER COMMISSIONS TO GET ACCOUNTABILITY SPREAD OUT IN THESE DIFFERENT AREAS THE NOT ONLY ENGINEERING BUT ENFORCEMENT AND EDUCATION? THANKS. >> COMMISSIONER, I THINK YOU HAVE HIT ON, PROBABLY, THE MAJOR THEME MOVING FORWARD. LANCE AND I WENT TO THE STATEWIDE POLICE CHIEFS ASSOCIATION MEETING 10 DAYS AGO. AND WE REQUESTED, HEY, WE NEED YOUR HELP. WE NEED -- WE NEED MORE POLICE ENFORCEMENT. WE NEED INCREASED POLICE ENFORCEMENT. FROM THE TRAFFIC CONTROL CAMERAS AND TWO TRAFFIC CONTROL CENTERS, I CAN SEE LESS ENFORCEMENT FROM THE CAMERAS OVER THE LAST TWO YEARS; I CAN SEE LESS ENFORCEMENT IN OUR, FROM OUR LOCAL POLICE DEPARTMENTS. SO IF YOU ARE GOING TO DO ENFORCEMENT, AND THIS IS, LARGELY, I THINK FALLS UNDER THE ROLE OF THE 23 URBAN REGIONS, OBVIOUS, THE STATE OF TEXAS IN PARTNERSHIP WITH THE PUBLIC SAFETY IS GOING TO HAVE CONVERSATIONS AND PARTNERSHIPS ABOUT WHAT THEY CAN DO. BUT IN 12 COUNTIES, I NEED, PROBABLY, MORE DPS IN MY PERIMETER COUNTIES. I NEED MAYBE THE INTRODUCTION OF COUNTY SHERIFFS AIDING DPS, IF NEEDED. AND THEN, I NEED TO REALLY REENGAGE IN 250 POLICE DEPARTMENTS IN MY REGION. NOT ALL OF THEM HAVE RESPONSIBILITY ON THE FREEWAYS. PART OF THIS MONEY IS TO PURCHASE ADDITIONAL MAN HOURS, IF NECESSARY, TO INCREASE THE ENFORCE THE. YOU ARE 100% CORRECT, COMMISSIONER, YOU ARE NOT GOING TO ENGINEER YOUR WAY AROUND AGGRESSIVE, CRAZY DRIVING. I GET, WHEN I GO HOME, I GET PEOPLE PASSING ME ON THE SHOULDERS, ACTIVE MOTORISTS ON SHOULDERS. EVERY DAY, THERE'S A WEAVE OF TWO OR THREE TIMES IN MY SEVEN-MILE TRIP. THAT WEAVE TRIGGERS ANOTHER CAR TO ACCOMPANY THEM IN THE WEAVE NOTION. AND WE HAVE AN EQUAL AMOUNT OF COMMITMENT NEEDING TO DO ON EDUCATION. AND I THINK THE IDEA OF ENGAGING THE MPOs, WHICH IS CODE FOR OUR LOCAL GOVERNMENTS AND LOCAL FOLKS TO RECOMMIT TO LOCAL GOVERNMENT POLICE DEPARTMENTS AND LOCALLY GRASSROOTS EDUCATION CAMPAIGNS, OTHERWISE, YOU ARE 100% CORRECT. YOU ARE NOT GOING TO ENGINEER YOUR WAY OUT OF THIS PARTICULAR SITUATION. SO THAT IS WHERE I THINK A LOT OF THE LOCAL FOCUS WILL BE. NOW ON BICYCLE AND PEDESTRIAN? A LOT OF THAT IS NOT AN ENFORCEMENT. WE'VE JUST FINISHED A MAJOR SAFETY STUDY IN OUR REGION. WE GOT TO WORK ON CROSS WALK DESIGN, BETTER SEPARATION OF BICYCLE AND PEDESTRIAN MOVEMENTS. ENHANCED LIGHTING IN MAJOR PEDESTRIAN AREAS. SO YOU'LL SEE LOCAL MPOs ENGINEERING SOME OF THESE STRATEGIES, BUT A LOT OF THIS IS GOING TO BE MORE MAN HOURS AND MORE BOOTS ON THE ENFORCEMENT SIDE AND MORE AGGRESSIVE CAMPAIGNS TO GET MORE ADULTS TRAVELING ON OUR TRANSPORTATION SYSTEM. >> YEAH. AND, LOOK, THIS IS A HUGE OPPORTUNITY. I'M NOT TRYING TO BE A DOWNER ON THIS AT ALL. I'M JUST, I DON'T WANT TO SEE THIS COMMITTEE GET, YOU KNOW, THE RESULTS BE FRUSTRATING. AND YOU KNOW REALLY SETTIN' OURSELVES UP FOR FAILURE HERE, NOT ACHIEVING OUR GOALS, EVEN THOUGH A LOT OF REALLY GOOD WORK IS GOING DONE OVER THE COMING MONTHS AND YEARS. BUT SOMEHOW, IT IS JUST MY PERSONAL OPINION THAT THIS COMMITTEE NEEDS TO -- I REALLY LEAVE IT UP TO THE EXPERTS HERE, BUT -- BUT IT NEEDS TO PARTNER WITH SOME OF THESE OTHER COMMISSIONS. I MEAN, IT NEEDS TO PARTNER WITH ENFORCEMENT AND EDUCATION IN ORDER TO ULTIMATELY ACHIEVE THE GOALS THAT YOU'RE TRYING TO ACHIEVE, IN MY OPINION. NOW, IF YOU DISAGREE WITH THAT, LET ME KNOW I'M JUST CURIOUS ABOUT THAT, BUT LOGICALLY. >> YOU'RE ACTUALLY RIGHT. I DON'T KNOW ADDITIONS TO OUR TASK FORCE OR THOSE OF THE GRASSROOT PROGRAMS WE'RE GOING TO BE TAKING TO EACH OF THE URBAN REGIONS. OUR TASK FORCE AT HOME WILL BE LOCAL POLICE DEPARTMENTS, EDUCATORS, I DON'T KNOW IF THAT'S IN ADDITION TO THE STATEWIDE TASK FORCE? BUT YOU'LL SEE VERY IMAGINATIVE GRASSROOTS SAFETY TASK FORCES, 23 DIFFERENT ONES OF THEM, AS THEY IMPLEMENT THIS PROGRAM, IF THIS IS SOMETHING THE COMMISSION WISHES TO DO. >> COMMISSIONER VAUGHN, I ALSO MIGHT JUST ADD ON TO THAT, IF I MAY, REAL QUICK? >> GO AHEAD. I'M GOING TO DO THE SAME THING YOU'RE DOING. >> OKAY. LANCE, YOU MIGHT BE ABLE TO SPEAK TO THIS, TOO. I THINK WHAT DIDN'T COME OUT IN THIS PRESENTATION IS THE TWO YEARS WORTH OF WORK, TOO, THAT BUILT IN AND MOVED INTO IT. SO, LANCE, MAYBE YOU CAN SHARE SOME OF THE ACTIVITIES THAT THE ORIGINAL TASK FORCE MOVED IN. BECAUSE THAT'S ONE OF THE REASONS THAT CHIEF CRANE IS HERE. AND THE ENGAGEMENT WITH SOME OF THE OTHER AGENTSSIES LIKE DPS, DMV, TLVR, ALCOHOL, TBAC. >> RIGHT. >> YOU WANT TO SHARE THAT, TOO, SINCE IT WASN'T IN THE PRESENTATION? THAT MIGHT BE GOOD INFORMATION. >> YOU BET. MOST OF THOSE AGENCIES LISTED MICHAEL AND JUSTIN ARE BOTH INVOLVED IN WORKGROUPS TO WHERE THOSE FOLKS PARTNER, HAVE COMMUNICATIONS FIGURING OUT HOW TO SHARE RESOURCES, PARTNER ON CAMPAIGNS, SHARE GRANTS IN A LOT OF THOSE THINGS. AND THOSE HAVE BEEN GOING ON FOR A COUPLE OF YEARS. AND WE HAVE, INDEED, MADE LOTS OF PROGRESS IN SOME AREAS AND SHARED IDEAS AND LOTS OF GOOD COMMUNICATION ON ALL OF THAT. AND I ASSURE YOU, ALL OF THOSE AGENCIES LISTED? THEY FEEL VERY RESPONSIBLE FOR THE NUMBERS GOING ON THERE NOW, TOO. AND WE HAVE, I THINK, ALL REACHED THE SAME COMMITMENT WE GET TO WHERE WE NEED TO GO; EVEN OUTSIDE OF THOSE AREAS, WE GOT DISTRICT ENGINEERS NOW EVEN IN RURAL AREAS GOING AND ENGAGING WITH THEIR LOCAL LAW ENFORCEMENT ON JUST WHAT CAN WE DO TO HELP? WHAT COULD YOU NEED OUT OF US? HERE'S WHAT WE REALLY COULD USE ALL OF Y'ALL. THOSE CONVERSATIONS HAVE REALLY AMPED UP JUST IN THE LAST FEW MONTHS. >> COMMISSIONER NEW? ANY COMMENTS? >> IT IS INTERESTING BECAUSE I THINK THAT WE'RE ON THE SAME WAVE LENGTH A LITTLE BIT. BUT MY PERSPECTIVE IS A LITTLE DIFFERENT. AND I, AS YOU KNOW, I CAN'T HELP MYSELF SOMETIMES SO I'M GOING TO SAY THIS IS LANCE AND HIS BROTHER MICHAEL AND HIS OTHER BROTHER MICHAEL. [ LAUGHTER ] AND I THINK THAT EACH ONE OF THEM CAN BRING, IF Y'ALL WILL COME UP, I WANT TO -- I WANT TO, YOU KNOW, CONCEPTUALLY, THE DESIGN OF THIS, THEY'RE -- AND I WANT TO LEAVE TO COMMISSIONER RYAN TO TALK ABOUT, MAYBE, MAYBE SHE'LL TALK ABOUT HER LETTERS TO DISTRICT ATTORNEYS, LETTERS TO -- BECAUSE THERE HAS BEEN AN EFFORT TO KIND OF A CENTRAL EFFORT THAT COMMISSIONER RYAN HAS LED THE CHARGE ON FOR SURE. BUT THE EFFORT OF LATE IS TRYING TO INTRODUCE THE NEW ELEMENT. SO IF YOU THINK ABOUT THESE THREE PLAYERS, LANCE HERE HAS DIVISIONS THAT IS HE'S WORKING WITH AND HE HAS DISTRICT ENGINEERS HE'S WORKING WITH, AND HE RECENTLY CAME IN FROM BEING A DISTRICT ENGINEER. SO HE BRINGS THAT. WELL, HE WAS A MEMBER OF AN MPO POLICY BOARD. SO EVERY POLICY BOARD OUT THERE FOR AN MPO HAS DISTRICT ENGINEER ON IT. EVERY MPO ALSO HAS A MAYOR, OR MORE THAN ONE MAYOR, HAS A COUNTY JUDGE OR MORE THAN ONE COUNTY JUDGE. AND THOSE PEOPLE HAVE SHERIFF'S DEPARTMENT AND POLICE DEPARTMENTS. SO PART OF WHAT WE'RE TRYING TO ACCOMPLISH HERE, BY BRINGING ALL OF THIS TOGETHER IS, LANCE ALSO HAS THE COMMUNICATION'S GROUP AT THE TxDOT LEVEL THAT HAS THE BRAND BUILDING OF "DON'T MESS WITH TEXAS" BRAND BUILDING OF MANY OTHER CAMPAIGNS TO BE THE BRAND BUILDER OF WHAT WE'RE DOING WITH THE SAFETY MESSAGING. "END THE STREAK" AND THOSE KINDS OF THINGS. WHAT LANCE BRINGS TO THIS TABLE OR TO THIS EQUATION HERE IS, HE BRINGS THAT COMMUNICATION'S GROUP. HE BRING AS RESEARCH CAPABILITY. HE BRINGS THE THINGS CENTRALLY. THEN, YOU GO TO MICHAEL, HE BRINGS THE ENGINEERING. SO THIS IS WHERE WE'RE SAYING, WHAT, DO RUMBLE STRIPS WORK THE BEST? DOES LIGHTING WORK THE BEST? DOES, YOU KNOW, WHAT DO WE DO AT INTERSECTIONS? SO HE HAS THAT. AND THEN, WHAT HIS BROTHER MICHAEL BRINGS TO THE BILL IS, HE HAS THE, HE HAS THE SHERIFFS. HE HAS THE POLICE CHIEFS. HE HAS COUNTY JUDGES, COUNTY COMMISSIONERS. HE HAS MAYORS. HE HAS -- SO IT IS ALLOWING A GRASSROOTS EFFORT. AND IT IS ALLOWING AN OPPORTUNITY FOR LOCAL PEOPLE ALL OVER THE STATE OF TEXAS TO BE TALKING ABOUT THE PROBLEMS THEY HAVE IN THEIR AREA AND WHAT THEY NEED TO DO TO SOLVE THE PROBLEM. SO IF WE CAN GET THE EQUATION TOGETHER WELL, WE'RE COMMUNICATING AN OVERALL, OVER ARCHING MESSAGE FROM THE STATE OF TEXAS IN DEVELOPING SOME INTERAGENCY RELATIONSHIPS WITH DPS, WITH DMV, WITH PEOPLE LIKE THAT, BUT WE'RE GETTINGLE MESSAGE OUT IN A CENTRAL WAY WITH AN UMBRELLA. THEN, WE'RE DOING THE ENGINEERING AND LOOKING AT WHAT REALLY WORKS IN RELATION TO REDUCING SPEED IN CERTAIN PLACE, REDUCING SPEED IN WORKPLACE AND WHAT DO WITH RUMBLE STRIPS AND ALL OTHER KIND OF ENGINEERING WITH TRAFFIC AND FINALLY BRING THE GRASSROOTS INTO THE EQUATION MOVING THIS TO THE LOCAL LEVEL. HOPEFULLY, THE KEY THING TO WHAT MR. MORRIS SAID IN HIS PRESENTATION WAS, MUCH LIKE YOU HOPE FEDERALISM WORKS AT THE NATIONAL LEVEL, CERTAIN STATES FIGURE OUT THINGS. IN THIS CASE, CERTAIN LOCALITIES FIGURE OUT THINGS WE START DUPLICATING. IT BECOMES RESEARCH. AND DEVELOPMENT BECOMES STEAL AND DUPLICATE. YOU MOVE IT BY KNOWING THE WHOLE STATE EL PASO FIGURED OUT HOW TO GET A NUT CRACKED AND SOMEONE ELSE SAID, WE'RE GOING TO DO IT, TOO. THAT'S KIND OF THE EQUATION OF THE OVERARCHING UMBRELLA AND A BUNCH OF ENGINEERS SPECIFICALLY TRAINED TO FIGHT THIS ISSUE. A LOCAL GRASSROOTS EFFORT WITH TENIKELS INTO COUNTY MAYORS JUDGES AND BRING ALL OF THAT INTO THE EQUATION OF TRYING TO REDUCE FATALITIES. OKAY? THAT'S WHAT WE'RE TRY DOING. I DON'T KNOW IF WE'RE MAKING IT CLEAR, BUT WHAT WE'RE AFTER. >> THANK YOU, COMMISSIONER NEW. COMMISSIONER RYAN. >> YES, THANK YOU. FIRST, THANK YOU FOR THE PRESENTATION AND AGENDA, MARC, CHAIRMAN TO, EVERYONE ON THE TASK FORCE. HOPEFULLY, THEY'RE WATCHING OR LISTENING. THEY'RE WORKING HARD AND PUTTING TOGETHER EVERYTHING. SO I WANTED TO START THERE. I HAVE A COUPLE OF QUESTIONS. AND THEN, UMM, THEN I HAVE A COMMENT AT THE END. BUT A COUPLE OF QUESTIONS. IF YOU GO -- MAYBE YOU KNOW THIS OR NOT -- WHEN WE TALK ABOUT SEAT BELTS DO WE HAVE THE STATISTICS ON THE, THE F FATALITY FAS, FRONT SEAT, BACKSEAT, DRIVER, PASSENGER? DO WE KNOW IF IT'S PREDOMINANTLY ONE AREA? OR IS IT SPREAD OUT? >> WE DO HAVE THAT INFORMATION. THE CRASH RECORD I HAVE TO GO BACK AND LOOK AT THAT. USUALLY, IT IS PART OF THE CRASH REPORT WHEN LAW ENFORCEMENT FILLS OUT THOSE CRASH RECORDS. THEY WILL IDENTIFY WHERE THE PERSON IS SEATED IN THE CAR. AND THEY WILL IDENTIFY WHETHER OR NOT THEY HAD THEIR SEAT BELTED OR NOT. THAT'S PART OF THE CRASH RECORD. WE COULD PULL THAT INFORMATION TOGETHER. >> OKAY. I THINK THAT WOULD BE HELPFUL. I THINK WHEN WE -- AND THAT GOES TO MY MESSAGE OF, HOW DO WE KNOW ALL OF OUR CAMPAIGNS AND EDUCATION EFFORTS ARE REACHING THE AUDIENCE THAT'S NEEDED IN A WAY THAT'S NEEDED TO MAKE A CHANGE? AND WHEN WE TALK ABOUT BUCKLING UP, IF I'M A DRIVER, AND AS A DRIVER I ALWAYS BUCKLE UP, BUT IF I GET IN THE BACKSEAT AND I MAY NOT BUCKLE UP, OR I'M ALWAYS A PASSENGER IN THE BACKSEAT, I THINK WE NEED TO PROBABLY PEEL BACK A, THE ONION A LITTLE BIT FARTHER, AS WE DIG INTO SOME OF OUR MESSAGES AND USE THOSE STATISTICS. THINK THE MESSAGING ON, YOU KNOW, 89% USES SEAT BELTED BUT HALF OUR FATALITIES ARE WITHIN THE 10%. >> RIGHT. >> I THINK IT STARTS TO TELL US SOMETHING AND OUR MESSAGE NEEDS TO SHIFT, I THINK SIMILAR WITH SEAT BELTS AND HELMETS ON MOTORCYCLES. THEN, I THINK, ALSO, THE MESSAGING OF OUR PEDESTRIAN AND BIKE FATALITIES, I THINK TO ALSO EDUCATE AND INCLUDE THAT EVERY ONE OF THOSE FATALITIES INCLUDED A CAR. RIGHT? A LOT OF PEOPLE WILL JUST MAYBE THEN IT IS SOMEONE RIDING A BIKE AND THEY SWERVED OFF THE ROAD. THERE'S USUALLY A REASON. I THINK THOSE ARE THE TYPES OF THINGS HELPFUL THERE. THAT TYPE OF STATISTIC I THINK IS HELPFUL. I THINK, ALSO, IN WORK ZONES, WE NEED TO THINK ABOUT THOUGH IT IS NOT AN ENGINEERING AND IT IS A DESIGN AND WITHIN OUR CONTROL I LIKE THE CONCEPT OF ALLOWING SPACE FOR LAW ENFORCEMENT. I THINK THAT'S A SAFETY ISSUE. I WAS DRIVING THE OTHER DAY WE HAD TWO CONCRETE BARRIERS ON BOTH SIDES AND A TIRE HAD BLOWN OUT ON THE PICKUP TRUCK. THAT PICKUP TRUCK, YOU KNOW, EVERYBODY WAS MOVING AT 60-PLUS MILES PER HOUR, WAS ON A RIM. AND I CLOCKED HOW FAR IT TOOK TO THE EXIT. IT WAS ALMOST A LITTLE OVER A MILE. AND THEY WERE DOING ABOUT 10 MILES PER HOUR. SO I DON'T KNOW IF THERE WAS A CONGESTION BACKUP OR ACCIDENT? BECAUSE, OBVIOUSLY -- THOSE ARE THE TYPES OF THINGS THAT MAYBE WE CAN ENGINEER, YOU KNOW, AND ALLOW OFF. I DON'T KNOW HOW WE DO IT. I KNOW THAT'S NOT AN EASY ASK. I THINK THOSE TYPES OF THINGS MAKE A DIFFERENCE. THERE WAS A COMMENT ABOUT METRICS, A COUPLE COMMENTS ABOUT METRICS. I KNOW THE MPO TASK FORCE HAS MADE A RECOMMENDATION ON FUNDING. I THINK I'VE -- I REITERATED AT BEGINNING AT ONE OF THE EARLIER MEETINGS, I THINK THE TASK FORCE NEEDS TO BRING METRICS TO THIS COMMISSION. I, PERSONALLY, DON'T KNOW THAT WE KNOW BEST, IN MY OPINION, TO CREATE THOSE METRICS. SO ONE OF THE THINGS I WOULD LIKE TO ASK OF THE TASK FORCE IS THAT I AGREE WITH THE ACCOUNTABILITY NOT JUST THE TASK FORCE, BUT WITH THE MPOs AND THE PUBLIC'S AND ALL OF THE LOCAL ENTITIES, BUT I THINK THE TASK FORCE NEEDS TO PULL THAT TOGETHER. AND I'M SURE THERE'S SOME OUT THERE THAT WORK. BUT I WOULD ASK THAT MAYBE WITHIN THE NEXT 30 TO 60 DAYS, TOPS, WE RECEIVE SOME FORM OF METRICS THAT IDENTIFY THE GOALS THAT THIS TASK FORCE AND AGENCIES CAN ALL ALIGN AROUND. AND WE HAVEN'T SEEN THAT, YET. I DON'T KNOW HOW WE CAN HELP, BUT I THINK THAT'S GOING TO BE KEY TO US MAKING THE DIFFERENCE HERE. UMM, THE LAST ONE IS, WE TALKED ABOUT PLANS. WE'VE GOT LOTS OF PLANS. IF WE COLLECT SAFETY PLANS, I DON'T WANT TO SEE THEM, PERSONALLY, SIT ON A SELF AND COLLECT DUST. I WOULD ALSO ASK IF WE'RE GOING TO HAVE ANYBODY CREATE A PLAN, AND SUBMIT IT TO US, I THINK WE NEED TO HAVE AN ACTION PLAN ON WHAT WE'RE GOING TO DO WITH THAT INFORMATION. OTHERWISE, IT WILL NOT BECOME AN ACTIONABLE OUTCOME. I THINK THAT'S IMPORTANT, TOO. LAST THING, IT WAS INTERESTING ON SLIDE 41 WHERE WE TALKED ABOUT THE DIFFERENT, THE CHANGE. AND THE D.U.I. ONLY CHANGED 6% YEAR-OVER-YEAR. BUT IT STILL REPRESENTS 30% OF OUR FATALITIES. SO I GUESS NOT INCREASING IS A WIN. BUT I CAN ALSO SAY THAT WITH M.A.D.D. AND D.A.R.E. PROGRAMS THAT STARTED WITH ALL OF OUR CHILDREN, THAT'S BEEN GOING ON FOR YEARS. IT'S BECOME SOCIALLY UNACCEPTABLE TO DRINK AND DRIVE; STILL HAPPENS OBVIOUSLY MORE THAN NOT. THE REST OF THE FATALITIES THAT ARE LISTED ON THIS PAGE, IT IS NOT SOCIALLY UNACCEPTABLE TO DO. IT IS NOT SOSHALLY UNACCEPTABLE TO SPEED. REALLY NOT SOCIALLY UNACCEPTABLE TO NOT WEAR A SEAT BELTED. YOU WEAR A HELMET OR DON'T WEAR A HELMET, PEOPLE SAY IT'S UP TO THEM. WORK ZONES AND BICYCLES. I THINK AS WE LOOK AT THE INCREASES AND WE GO AFTER THOSE WE HAVE TO FIGURE OUT HOW TO MAKE THESE BEHAVIORS SOCIALLY UNACCEPTABLE. BECAUSE, UNFORTUNATELY, SHAME AND GUILT ARE USUALLY THE ONLY THING THAT CHANGE HUMAN BEHAVIOR. SO I THINK THAT WE HAVE A LOT OF WORK TO DO, WHICH I THINK IS, WHICH IS GOOD. THE LAST QUESTION I HAVE IS, IF I MAY? IS FOR CHIEF CRANE. IF I COULD PUT YOU ON THE SPOT, SIR? >> ABSOLUTELY. >> THANKS FOR BEING HERE. AND ALL OF THE INVOLVEMENT YOU'VE GIVEN US. WHAT ARE WE MISSING? FROM YOUR PERSPECTIVE? AND WHAT ARE THE CHALLENGES THAT YOU SEE AND YOUR OFFICERS SEE ON THE ROAD SO THAT WE CAN BE AWARE OF THAT? >> CHAIRMAN, COMMISSIONER, COMMISSIONER RYAN, GOOD SEEING YOU AGAIN. AS I TRY TO GET THEIR ATTENTION I HAD COMMENTS I WANTED TO MAKE, YOU KNOW, THAT BROUGHT ON BY COMMISSIONER VAUGHN. SO, WHILE THIS ORGANIZATION AND WHAT THEY'RE DOING IS IMPORTANT. SO TRAFFIC ENFORCEMENT TRADITIONALLY SPEAKING HAS JUST BEEN A STATE LAW ENFORCEMENT, STATE POLICE HAVE DONE. LOCAL LAW ENFORCEMENT HAVEN'T BEEN INVOLVED IN TRAFFIC ENFORCEMENT TRADITIONALLY SPEAKING. THERE'S BEEN OUTLIERS ON THAT. AUSTIN P.D. USED TO HAVE A GOOD TRAFFIC ENFORCEMENT PROGRAM BECAUSE OF POLITICS I THINK THAT'S GONE AWAY. IT'S BEEN COMING FROM NIPSA ANG IUCP BEEN PUSHED DOWN TO THE STATES AND THE STATE POLICE HAVE TAKEN CARE OF THAT. THAT'S WHY THE MPO PIECE IS SO IMPORTANT, BECAUSE IT BRINGING IN THE LOCAL LAW ENFORCEMENT AND GETTING TALKING ABOUT TRAFFIC ENFORCEMENT AND HOW IMPORTANT THAT IS THAT IT ACTUALLY DOES SAVE LIVES. THAT HAVING A PATROL CAR I OBVIOUSLY HAVE A BIAS TO THE BLACK AND WHITE, HAVING THAT BLACK AND WHITE ON THE ROADWAY SAVES LIVES. AND THAT'S ONE OF THE MESSAGING AND SOME OF THE PREACHING THAT WE'RE DOING RIGHT NOW TO OUR TROOPERS, THE, IS THAT HAVING THAT BLACK AND WHITE BEING UNIVERSITY ON THE ROAD, SAVES LIVES. PART OF THAT PROBLEM IS, YOU DON'T -- BEING OUT ON THE ROAD, SAVES LIVES. PART OF THE PROBLEM IS, YOU DIDN'T HAVE BEING THERE THAT DAY TO SEE THE CRASH. YOU DON'T SEE THE IMPACT. ONE CHALLENGE RIGHT NOW OBVIOUSLY YOU ARE ALL AWARE OF NOW IS OBVIOUSLY THE BORDER. WE SEND TROOPERS NINE DAYS A WEEK EVERY WEEK. THEY'RE ROTATING AND COMING BANG. WE'RE SITTING ON AROUND 400 VACANCIES IN OUR DIVISION AND 600 VACANCIES WITHIN THE DEPARTMENTS. THAT'S SYSTEMIC ACROSS THE LAW ENFORCEMENT RECRUITING. WE'RE DOING GOOD, BUT THE LOCAL LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCIES ARE HAVING A PRETTY BAD PROBLEM WITH THAT. THAT'S AFFECTING IT. TRAFFIC ENFORCE SOME OF THE NOT SEXY OR THE FUN THING BUT PROBABLY ONE OF THE MOST IMPACTFUL THINGS IN LAW ENFORCEMENT TO SAVE LIVES. THE, I ACTUALLY DIDN'T KNOW 12.3 A DAY. I'M MEETING WITH ALL OF OUR TROOPERS TOMORROW IN-SERVICE AND THAT'S IN MY NOTES ADDING 12.3 A DAY TO IT. AND COULDN'T AGREE MORE WITH LANCE THAT WE'RE NOT GOING TO ENGINEER OUR WAY OUT OF THIS PROBLEM IN TEXAS. THE ONE OF THE THINGS I WOULD ACTUALLY ASK OF Y'ALL IF Y'ALL GET A CHANCE WE NEED N MORE TROOPERS IN THE STATE OF TEXAS. THAT'S ACTUALLY ONE OF OUR NUMBER ONE EXCEPTIONAL ITEM INTO NEXT SESSION WE NEED MORE TROOPERS. BECAUSE OUR TROOPS HAVE BECOME KIND OF A MULTI-TOOL FOR THE STATE OF TEXAS. IT DOESN'T MATTER WHAT'S BROKE, YOU SEND IN THE HIGHWAY PATROL AND WE'LL FIX IT. THE, SO BECAUSE OF THAT, AND THE SUCCESS OUR TROOPERS HAVE HAD DOING, SHUTTING DOWN THE BORDER IN LOUISIANA AND GOING TO THE AIRPORTS DURING COVID AND ALL OF OF THE SCHOOL STUFF INITIATIVE WE'VE GOT STARTED. AND IT'S ALL IMPORTANT. SO IS TRAFFIC ENFORCEMENT. IT'S THOSE BIG THREE SPEED, SEAT BELTED, D.U.I. IF WE CAN MAKE A BIG IMPACT ON THOSE THREE? THEN THE REST OF IT WILL FALL IN PLACE. JUST, YOU KNOW, WE WERE TALKING BEFOREHAND DURING 2020 I WAS REALLY EXPECTING AND HOPING THE STREAK WAS GOING TO END. WAS ACTUALLY PRETTY OPTIMISTIC ABOUT IT, ME AND MIKE HAD CONVERSATIONS ABOUT IT, WE SAW THE COMPLETE ACTUAL OPPOSITE OF THAT. THE ONE THING WE'RE DOING RIGHT NOW WITH THE BORDER INITIATIVES WE HAVE GOING ON AND THE VACANCIES THAT WE DO HAVE, TxDOT IS ACTUALLY VITALLY IMPORTANT TO OUR HIGHWAY SAFETY OPERATION CENTER FUNDED BY Y'ALL. THE, BECAUSE OF THE FUNDING THAT Y'ALL ARE GIVING US AND OUR HSAC WE GOT THE TABLO SERVER SO NOW EVERY SERGEANT IS GETTING, HERE'S YOUR HEAT MAP FOR YOUR AREA. SO WHETHER YOU'VE GOT ONE TROOPER OUT TODAY OR LUCKY DAY YOU'VE GOT TWO, THE, THIS IS WHERE THEY NEED TO GO WORK. ACTUALLY BEING SMARTER AND LEVERAGING TECHNOLOGY TO HELP IMPACT THOSE AREAS, ACTUALLY TELLING LIKE WHEN I WAS ON THE ROAD, OVER TWO DECADES OW GO, I WENT TO WORK AND I JUST WENT AND WORKED THE ROADS I WANTED TO WORK. WHERE I LIKED WORKING AND KNEW I'D FIND DRUNKS AND FIND SOME DOPE AND I JUST HAD THE LITTLE ROUTE IN KAUFMAN COUNTY AND WE HAD THE CONVERSATION WITH KENT. THOSE DAYS ARE GONE. WE DON'T HAVE -- YOU'RE NOT GOING TO HAVE THE FLEXIBILITY ANYMORE. YOU'RE GOING TO NEED TO GO WHERE WE NEED YOU TO GO NOW. AND IT IS HAVING THE CONVERSATIONS WITH OUR CHAIN OF COMMAND AND OUR SERGEANTS THAT YOU'VE GOT TO BE MORE PROACTIVE IN ACTUALLY ACROSSING WHERE THE PROBLEMS ARE -- PRO-ACTIVE IN ADDRESSING WHERE THE PROBLEMS ARE AND USING THE TECHNOLOGY FROM TxDOT DO THAT IN THE INTERIM PERIOD UNTIL WE GET THE NUMBERS UP AND GET MOVING THAT'S WHAT WE HAVE TO DO. WE CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE IN DOING THAT. THE MPOs ACTUALLY KIND OF GETTING THE LOCAL LAW ENFORCEMENT ON BOARD WITH TRAFFIC ENFORCEMENT, HOW IMPORTANT THAT IS. THAT'S WHERE THE DIFFERENCE IS GOING TO BE MADE. AND THAT'S, THAT'S WHY -- WHAT THEY'VE PUT TOGETHER IS SO IMPORTANT. >> THANK YOU. AND WE'LL WORK HARD TO CONTINUE TO PARTNER. AND WE APPRECIATE THE PARTNERSHIP. YOU KNOW IT STARTS AT THE TOP AND DPS, ALSO. LAST POINT I WOULD LIKE TO MAKE, AND I MADE THIS TO OUR TEAM AT A PREVIOUS MEETING, IS THAT TIME IS CRITICAL. 12.3 OF LAST YEAR, WE'RE HOPING NOT DO THAT AGAIN. EVERY DAY THAT WE AREN'T ABLE TO EXECUTE ON SOMETHING, 10 LIVES ARE IMPACTED. TEN PEOPLE DO NOT COME HOME. AND IF THE AVERAGE FAMILY IS FOUR, THAT MEANS 40 H HEARTS BREAK EVERY SINGLE DAY. EVERY HOUR IS IMPORTANT, EVERY DAY MAKES A DIFFERENCE. SO, THANK YOU. THANK YOU. >> WELL, I WOULD LIKE TO THANK ALL OF YOU FOR YOUR PARTICIPATION IN THIS SAFETY BRIEFING TODAY. AND ESPECIALLY WOULD LIKE TO THANK COMMISSIONER LAURA RYAN AND COMMISSIONER NEW AS CO-CHAIRS OF THIS SAFETY TASK FORCE. WE'VE LEARNED A LOT ABOUT WHAT WE CAN DO TO TRY TO, YOU'VE IDENTIFIED, WITH GRANULARITY WHAT A LOT OF PEOPLE ARE DOING. I MEAN, IT IS AMAZING THAT IN THIS DAY AND TIME, 45% OF OUR FATALITIES ARE RELATED TO JUST NOT WEARING Y YOUR SEAT BELT. SOMETHING AS SIMPLE AS THAT READILY AVAILABLE TO EVERYBODY THAT GETS INTO A CAR OR TRUCK NOW. ONE THING, KIND OF GOING BACK TO, WHEN I BASICALLY SENT A LETTER TO YOU, COMMISSIONER RYAN, AND COMMISSIONER NEW, TO FORM THIS TASK FORCE ON AUGUST 31st, 2021, IS WE WANTED TO FOCUS ON THE FUNDING THAT'S CURRENTLY ALLOCATED UNDER CATEGORIES 5, 7, AND 8, BASICALLY NOT BEING USED FOR SAFETY. THE NEXT TIME Y'ALL GIVE AN UPDATE, YOU CAN FOCUS ON PROGRESS BEING -- CAN YOU FOCUS ON PROGRESS BEING MADE ON YOUR WORK AND FOCUS ON UNSPENT FUNDS IN CATEGORIES 7 AND 8? BECAUSE EVERYTHING YOU ARTICULATED TODAY IS EXACTLY WHAT WAS WITHIN THE SCOPE OF WHAT I'VE ASKED Y'ALL TO DO. BUT IT IS GOING TO TAKE MONEY TO DO IT. >> UH-HUH. >> AND SO NEXT TIME, IF YOU COULD FOCUS ON LOOKING AT THE UNSPENT FUNDING THAT IS OUT THERE FOR CATEGORIES 5, 7, 8, SO THAT WHEN WE COME BACK AND TALK ABOUT THIS, AND YOU'RE TELLING US -- I MEAN, YOU GOT A GREAT PLAN. YOU'VE SHARED WITH US TODAY. THEN WE GOT TO COME BACK AND REALLY SEE WHAT, HOW CAN WE GATHER THOSE FUNDS TOGETHER? I WOULD LIKE TO SEE IT BY, YOU KNOW, BY MPO STATEWIDE. AND THEN, GRAND TOTAL. AND HOW YOU MIGHT SUGGEST ALLOCATING THAT. >> CLAIM, IF I MIGHT? MAYBE CLARITY, LANCE AND MICHAEL CAN JUMP IN, TOO. BUT IT IS MY UNDERSTANDING FROM SITTING THROUGH THE MEETINGS, THAT THE REQUESTED MONEY BY MPO WOULD BE GIVEN TO EACH MPO, THAT $50,000, IN EXCHANGE FOR A PLAN, AN ACTION PLAN WORKING WITH THE DISTRICT THAT, THEN, WOULD CREATE A CATEGORY 11 SAFETY FUND. YOU GUYS CORRECT ME IF I'M WRONG HERE, THAT CATEGORY 11 SAFETY FUND WOULD DRAWN FROM 5, 7, AND 8. SO IT WOULD DRAWDOWN THOSE CATEGORIES. >> YES. >> TO FUND THAT. IS THAT -- AM I MISTAKEN THERE? BECAUSE THAT'S I BELIEVE WHAT PART OF THE PROPOSAL WAS TODAY ON SLIDE 24, BUT MAYBE, MAYBE NOT ARTICULATED. >> RIGHT. >> IN A MANNER. >> AS YOU KNOW, IN OUR DRAFT UTP, WE DO HAVE THE CATEGORY 11 SAFETY. SO, SO WHAT YOU'RE SAYING IS, THE WORK THAT YOU ALL HAVE BEEN DOING RELATED TO 5, 7, AND 8 FUNDING IS TO BE -- BUT WE NEED TO, BASICALLY, ADD ALL OF THAT UP FOR LACK OF A BETTER TERM. AND THE -- I GET THE 1.2 MILLION TO BE ALLOCATED AND GIVE 50,000 TO EACH OF THE 23 MPO DISTRICTS SO THEY CAN COME UP WITH A PLAN. WHAT I'M TRYING TO GET MY ARMS AROUND AND WHAT I'M ASKING Y'ALL TO GET YOUR ARMS AROUND IS, HOW MUCH IS THERE IN UNSPENT 5, 7, AND 8 MONEY THAT WE CAN TURN AROUND AND WHETHER WE DO AS PROPOSED IN THE DRAFT UTP NEW CATEGORY 11 SAFETY. I'M ASKING THE QUESTION HOW MUCH FIRE POWER IS OUT THERE WE CAN PUT? AS YOU ARTICULATED, SIR, THE DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC SAFETY IS THE FRONTLINE. YOU ALL SEE, YOU KNOW, SEE THIS EVERY DAY AND EVERYTHING COMMISSIONER RYAN IS TALKING ABOUT, YOU KNOW, ACTUALLY MORE THAN 10 PEOPLE A DAY ON AVERAGE LOSE THEIR LIVES. AND SO ALL OF THE -- ALL OF THE PLANS AND ALL OF THE METRICS AND EVERYTHING WE'VE TALKED ABOUT TODAY WILL REQUIRE FUNDING TO IMPLEMENT AND ACHIEVE THE GOALS THAT WE'RE ALL TRYING TO ACHIEVE OF REDUCING DEATHS AND GET TO THAT, GET TO THAT ZERO. MICHAEL, YOU'RE THE MASTER OF ALL THINGS MPO. >> SO, MR. CHAIRMAN, I THINK ONE THING HELPFUL AND MAYBE MARC A HOMEWORK ASSIGNMENT WITH YOU WHEN I HER THE TERM "UNSPENT" CATEGORY 5 AND 7 NICE TO HEAR WHAT TxDOT DEFINES AS "UNSPENT" SO WE USE THAT PARTICULAR DEFINITION. SO YOU MAY PERCEIVE, IF YOU LOOK AT A PARTICULAR SET OF BOOKS, THERE MUST BE UNSPENT MONEY. YOU MAY NOT KNOW, IN HOUSTON, THEY HAVE $60 MILLION IN YEAR 5 THAT'S GOING TO GO TO A PARTICULAR PROJECT. ON YOUR BOOKS, IT LOOKS "UNSPENT." BUT WHEN YOU QUERY IT MAY NOT BE UNSPENT. WHATEVER DEFINITION OF "UNSPENT" WE'RE MORE THAN HAPPENTY TO TAKE THAT PARTICULAR DEFINITION. THE KEY PART, AND IF YOU WERE TO -- IF YOU WERE TO APPROVE THE $50,000, AND LET EACH MPO, BASICALLY, DEVELOP THIS GRASSROOTS PROGRAM, I CAN SPEAK FOR MY REGION. I NEED TO GO INTO THE SURFACE TRANSPORTATION BLOCK GRANT FUNDS WHICH IS THE MOST ELIGIBLE OF ALL OF THE FEDERAL FUNDS, AND I'M DIRECTLY GOING TO BUY POLICE HOURS FOR ENFORCEMENT. I CAN NO LONGER SETTLE FOR, WELL, WE DON'T HAVE ENOUGH RECRUITS. YOU'RE GOING TO HAVE TO WAIT. I'M GOING TO SAY, OKAY. I'M PUTTING FIVE -- I'M HIRING FIVE POLICE OFFICERS FROM YOUR TROOP THAT'S GOING TO COST $4 MILLION. A FOUR-YEAR PROGRAM, I NEED TO DO IT HEREN HERE AND HERE AND SUCCESSFULLY SPEND DOWN SURFACE TRANSPORTATION BLOCK GRANTS AS ELIGIBLE SAFETY EXPENSE TO DIRECT PAY FOR INCREASED ENFORCEMENT. AND I CAN DO THE SAME THING WITH REGARD TO EDUCATION. SO WE WILL SPEND SOME COMBINATION OF $50 MILLION, AT LEAST STAFF WILL REQUEST, AS PART OF OUR OPERATIONS AND MANAGEMENT BUDGET. WE'VE ALREADY RENAMED IT "OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT AND SAFETY." AND WE HAVE AGGRESSIVELY GOING TO REQUEST MY BOARD OF DIRECTORS TO SPECIFICALLY PAY FOR THOSE COUNTER MEASURES SURFACE TRANSPORTATION BLOCK GRANT FUNDS ARE DIRECT ELIGIBLE FOR. AIR QUALITY THEY'RE NOT ELIGIBLE AS A DIRECT ELEMENT. YOU HAVE TO CROSS WALK IT. CONGESTION MITIGATION AND QUALITY HAS TO HAVE AIR QUALITY BENEFIT. WE'LL COME UP WITH THE AIR QUALITY BENEFITS THAT ALSO HAVE SAFETY IMPROVEMENTS AS PART OF IT. SO IN OUR REGION WE GET CONGESTION ELIMINATION FUNDS. YOU DON'T GET THOSE IN 21 OF 20 -- 18 OF 23 MPOs DON'T GET CONGESTION MITIGATION AIR QUALITY FUNDS. THAT FUND IS NOT AVAILABLE TO THEM. SO, EACH REGION AND SOME GET CATEGORY 2 FUND, EACH REGION WILL LOOK AT THEIR 5, 7, AND 8 AND COME UP WITH THIS ACTION PLAN FOR YOU TO ANSWER THAT VERY, VERY QUESTION. WE MAY PARTNER AND PURCHASE NOR RUMBLE STRIPS OR SOMETHING ELSE IF THE DISTRICTS DON'T HAVE ENOUGH MONEY DO WHAT THEY WANT DO. YOU'LL SEE DIRECT IN 5 AND 7 OF THE CROSSWALK THIS IS DALLAS-FORT WORTH THEY DON'T HAVE NEARLY AS MUCH MONEY AS YOU PERCEIVE THEM TO HAVE. $50,000 GOES A LONG WAY FOR THEM TO DEVELOP A GRASSROOT PROGRAM WITHIN THEIR PARTICULAR COMMUNITY, WHERE THEY MAY NOT BE ABLE TO PURCHASE BUT GET SWEAT EQUITY TO MOVE T NEEDLE IN THE DIRECTION THAT SMALLER MPO WISHES TO GO. NOW, IF YOU WANT IT IN THREE MONTHS? YOU ARE GOING TO BE DISAPPOINTED. I THINK YOU GOT TO GIVE THESE REGIONS SOME TIME TO TAKE THE CHARGE OF A SAFETY RESPONSIBILITY AND TRANSLATE THAT DIRECTLY INTO THE APPLICATION OF THEIR 5 AND 7 MONEYS TO ECHO BACK TO YOU, WITH REGARD TO THIS PARTICULAR COMMITMENT. IT CAN'T HAPPEN OVER -- IT CAN'T HAPPEN OVERNIGHT. THEY HAVE TO ACTUALLY, IN ORDER TO BE FEDERALLY ELIGIBLE, YOU HAVE TO GO THROUGH AND MAKE SURE IT IS FEDERALLY ELIGIBLE FOR THE SURFACE TRANSPORTATION BLOCK GRANT. YOU GOT TO CROSS WALK YOUR CONGESTION MITIGATION AIR QUALITY FUNDS AND GET INTO THE T.I.P. AND APPROVED BY THE COMMISSION AND APPROVED FEDERAL HIGHWAY ADMINISTRATION AND AGREEMENTS TO IMPLEMENT IT. IT'S NOT GOING TO HAPPEN IMMEDIATELY FOR YOU, WHICH IS WHY, IF WE'RE GOING TO TURN THIS NEEDLE QUICKLY, WE HAVE TO TURN IT WITH MORE LOCAL MONEY UNTIL THE FEDERAL MONEY IS PROCESSED FOR THE APPLICATIONS THAT WE WANT. I HOPE THAT HELPS ANSWER YOUR QUESTION. >> NO. YOU ALL ARE MAKING GREAT PROGRESS. I'M JUST REINFORCING THAT IS ONE OF THE GOALS AND OBJECTIVES. >> WE KNOW THAT. >> YEP. >> I GUESS WHAT I WAS REINFORCING IS THAT PLAN IS THERE. PART OF WHY I BROUGHT THAT UP IS, TO GET THAT INFORMATION FROM EACH OF THE MPOs. NOT ALL OF THE MPOs ARE ON THE TASK FORCE. TO GET THE COOPERATION AND SUGGESTION WAS MADE THAT WE COME UP WITH, TO GET THE PLAN AND THE INFORMATION WE WANT, IN EXCHANGE FOR THE $50,000 PER MPO. MY COMMENT BACK WAS, WE SHOULDN'T HAVE TO PAY FOR SAFETY. I'M JUST -- I MEAN I SAID THAT IN OUR MEETING. IT WAS EXPLAINED THAT SOME OF THE SMALLER MPOs DON'T HAVE THE RESOURCES TO DO THE TYPES OF THINGS THAT WE WANT. AND THIS WILL SUPPORT THAT. SO, UMM, I THINK WHAT I'VE HEARD FROM -- AND COMMISSIONER NEW CAN ALSO JUMP IN, IF HE HEARS SOMETHING DIFFERENT -- THEY'RE WAITING FOR DIRECTION FROM THE COMMISSION. IS THAT THE DIRECTION? ARE THESE PLANS IMPORTANT? WHAT ARE THE -- THEY'LL COME UP WITH METRICS AND CRITERIA THAT ARE NEEDED IN THE PLAN. WHICH WILL BE, HOW DO YOU PLAN TO USE THE CATEGORIES TO INCREASE THE SAFETY OR FUNDS UNSPENT OR UNALLOCATED? ALSO WHAT CAN YOU DO WITH LOCAL MONEY? THE POINT SOME OF THIS IS GOING TO TAKE A LITTLE BIT LONGER BECAUSE OF THE RED TAPE, SO TO SPEAK, OF USING THOSE FUNDS. IT CAN BE IN MORE DETAIL. I THINK THE FIRST STEP IS THEY'RE LOOKING TOR DIRECTION. >> RIGHT. >> FROM STAFF AND THE COMMISSION. >> RIGHT. VERY GOOD. THANK YOU ALL VERY MUCH. >> SO THANK YOU ALL THREE QUICK THINGS I HEARD I DIDN'T QUITE WANT TO MAKE SURE WE GOT TO VOTE ON? >> CHAIR? JUST TWO QUICK THINGS. >> SURE. >> I KNOW WE'RE RUNNING WELL OVER OUR TIME ALLOTMENT HERE. SO I'M GETTING TWO MACRO THINGS OUT OF THIS. ONE IS WE'VE GOT A STATEWIDE CHALLENGE TO, YOU KNOW, REINFORCE OUR TROOPERS OUT THERE AND GET THESE NUMBERS BACK UP SO WE CAN DO THE JOB THAT, THAT, YOU KNOW, THEY NEED TO DO STATEWIDE. AND MR. CALVERT, IF YOU'RE LISTENING, YOU KNOW, THE STATE NEEDS TO LEAD BY EXAMPLE IN TERMS OF ENFORCEMENT. YOU KNOW, IF -- IF THESE LOCAL -- AH, ENFORCEMENT, AH, GROUPS ARE SAYING WHAT THE STATE IS DOING, IF WE CAN'T, YOU KNOW, SOONER OR LATER REBUILD OR, OUR TROOPERS, AND THE PEOPLE THAT WE NEED STATEWIDE, THE BETTER. UMM, ASSUMING THIS IMMIGRATION DEAL IS GOING TO KEEP ON GOIN' FOR A WHILE IT, LOOKS LIKE IT MAY. YOU KNOW, I WAS JUST KIND OF RUNGIN' THE NUMBERS IN MY HEAD, IF -- RUNNING THE NUMBERS IN MY HEAD, IF 34% OF FATALITIES ARE DUE TO SPEED IF, YOU KNOW, REALLY I MEAN IN SOME ASPECT, YOU COULD SAY THAT WE'RE LOSIN' 1500 PEOPLE OR SOME DEGREE OF 1500 PEOPLE A YEAR BECAUSE A LOT OF OUR TROOPERS ARE HAVIN' TO ADDRESS A BORDER SITUATION THAN BEING PRESENT AROUND THE STATE. UMM, YOU KNOW, THAT, THAT -- THAT'S REASON ENOUGH FOR ME TO ENCOURAGE THE LEGISLATURE TO, YOU KNOW, LOOK AT THIS. AND FIND SOME ADDITIONAL FUNDING FOR SAFETY. AND THEN, THE OTHER THING IS, I'M JUST CONCERNED ABOUT, UMM, AH, WITH OUR COMMITTEE, I'M JUST CONCERNED ABOUT, YOU KNOW, I -- ONE OF THE LAST SLIDES THERE, MICHAEL, YOU HAD, UMM, YOU KNOW, CREATE ACCOUNTABILITY. AND, AND, YOU KNOW, HOW CAN -- I JUST -- I STILL HAVE A LITTLE DISCONNECT BETWEEN HOW CAN Y'ALL CREATE ACCOUNTABILITY WITHIN YOUR COMMITTEE, IF YOU'RE NOT, IF YOU DON'T -- IF YOU'RE NOT IN PARTNERSHIP? AND I HEAR WHAT COMMISSIONER NEW IS SAYIN'. YOU KNOW, WE'RE -- WE'VE GOT A VERTICAL EXPOSURE TO, TO ENFORCEMENT. AND TO EDUCATION. BUT, YOU KNOW, TO HAVE, IF WE'RE NOT IN DIRECT PARTNERSHIP WITH ENFORCEMENT AND EDUCATION, I JUST WORRY ABOUT THE ACCOUNTABILITY. AND I -- AND I -- IT'S NOT NECESSARILY ACCOUNTABILITY WITHIN YOUR COMMITTEE, BUT, HOW DO WE KNOW THAT ENFORCEMENT AND EDUCATION IS HOLDING THEMSELVES ACCOUNT ABILITY LIKE YOU'RE PLANNING ON HOLDING YOURSELF ACCOUNTABILITY? IT WOULD BE NICE IF THERE'S A PARTNERSHIP AND MORE OF A TEAM EFFORT AND EVERYBODY WAS ALIGNED AND SANITIZED, AH, AH, MORE CONSISTENTLY. THANK YOU. >> YEAH. IF I COULD JUST ADD? MICHAEL MORRIS FOR THE RECORD. COMMISSIONER, YOU'RE ABSOLUTELY RIGHT. THE TWO PARTS ABOUT ACCOUNTABILITY I THINK ARE IMPORTANT IS WE GOT -- WE GET MEASURED BY THE FATALITY AND FATALITY RATE WHICH MAY BE AN UNFAIR MEASUREMENT IF TOTALLY OUTSIDE OF OUR CONTROL, I THINK THE POINT YOU'RE MAKING. I ALSO ADDED THEY'RE HELD ACCOUNT ACHE FOR THE PROGRAMS WE IMPLEMENTED. SO DID YOU IMPLEMENT INCREASED POLICE ENFORCEMENT? DID YOU INCREASE YOUR EDUCATION CAMPAIGNS? DID YOU MATCH YOUR PROGRAMS SO YOU'RE NOT DUPLICATING WHAT THE STATE IS DOING? IT'S QUITE POSSIBLE THE NEEDLE MAY NOT MOVE AS FAST AS WE ALL WANT DO IT. THE ACCOUNTABILITY PART IS WE CAN'T SIT ON OUR HANDS AND NOT IMPLEMENT AN AGGRESSIVE SET OF PROGRAMS TO TRY. SO IT IS THE METRIC, AS ASKED FOR. THE METRIC OF THE GOAL. BUT IT IS ALSO THE METRIC OF THE DEGREE OF IMPLEMENTATION AND SUPPORT YOU HAD FOR THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE PROGRAMS TO MOVE THE NEEDLE. THAT'S -- THAT'S JUST AS A PART, IMPORTANT PART ACCOUNTABILITY AS THE METRIC ITSELF. IN MY OPINION. >> OKAY. ARE THERE ANY OTHER COMMENTS OR QUESTIONS? OKAY. HEARING NONE, WE DO HAVE A COMMENT CARD. I WOULD LIKE TO INVITE JAY BLAZIC CROSSLEY TO COME FORWARD AND STATE YOUR NAME FOR THE RECORD AND THE ORGANIZATION THAT YOU REPRESENT. >> THANK YOU VERY MUCH. HELLO, CHRISERS. THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR YOUR SERVICE TO THE -- COMMISSIONERS. THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR YOUR SERVICE TO THE PEOPLE OF TEXAS. JAY BLAZIC CROSLEY AND EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR NONPROFIT FARM AND CITY. OUR BIGGEST PROJECT SUPERVISION OF TEXAS THE ADVOCACY MOVEMENT TO WORK WITH GOVERNMENTS AND COMMUNITIES TO END TRAFFIC DEATHS. AND I HAVE THE HONOR OF WORKING VERY CLOSELY WITH CENTRAL TEXAS FAMILIES FOR SAFE STREETS WHO ARE VOLUNTEERS WHO HAVE SUFFERED THE MOST FROM THESE CRASHES. AND SPEND THEIR TIME MAKING SURE OTHER FAMILIES DON'T HAVE TO GO THROUGH WHAT THEY HAVE GONE THROUGH. I DO WANT TO SAY, TO ALL OF YOU, AND ESPECIALLY TO MR. MORRIS AND CALVO AND EVERYONE AT MPO LEVEL AND TxDOT STAFF, YOU KNOW, ON BEHALF OF THE FAMILIES THAT DON'T WANT THIS HAPPENING ANYMORE, THANK YOU SO MUCH. AND WE'RE GOING TO KEEP DEMANDING MORE. AND EVERY DAY, THERE'S 12 PROBLEMS HERE, WE ALL MUST DO MORE. I, I -- I GUESS VERY QUICKLY. YOU KNOW, A LOT OF WHAT WE DO IS ADVOCATE FOR VISION ZERO AND FOR ROAD TO ZERO. I THANK YOU GUY AS BUNCH FOR THE STATE OF TEXAS HAS AN EXPLICIT GOAL TO END TRAFFIC DEATHS. AND YOU HAVE GIVEN CLEAR DIRECTION TO DISTRICTS AND DIVISIONS THAT ALL DISTRICTS AND DIVISIONS MUST BE WORKING TO CUT TRAFFIC DEATHS IN HALF BY 2025 AND END BY 2050. I BELIEVE 14 GOVERNMENTS IN THE STATE OF TEXAS WHO SHARE, WHOSE LEADERSHIP ESTABLISHED SUCH A GOAL. MY POINT 255 COUNTIES IN TEXAS 960 CITIES AND [ INAUDIBLE ] AND WE BELIEVE EACH ONE MUST JOIN YOU EACH LEVEL OF GOVERNMENT MUST DO ITS PART AND BE COMMITTED TO THIS. AND I DID, I'M GOING TO RUN OUT OF TIME. I HAVE TO MAKE A POINT ABOUT SPEED. THE NUMBERS YOU SEE ARE THE NUMBERS ON SPEEDING. AND THAT'S ONLY WHEN POLICE OFFICERS CAN ESTABLISH SOMEONE WAS VIOLATING A LAW ON SPEEDING, BUT NOT SPEED. AND THE PROBLEM WITH "SPEED," EVERY DEATH THERE WAS SOMEONE DRIVING A VEHICLE FAST ENOUGH TO KILL A PERSON. AND "SPEED" IS ESSENTIALLY A FACTOR OF ALL TRAFFIC DEATHS. AND I BELIEVE IT IS THE ONE ISSUE THAT WE CAN DO A LOT MORE. YES, ENGINEERING WILL NOT SOLVE EVERYTHING, BUT CAN SOLVE A LOT. AND THE WAY WE DESIGN OUR STREETS, THE WAY WE ASSUME PEOPLE WILL ACT, AND THEN DESIGN FOR, C CHANGES THE WAY THEY ACT. I'LL FINISH WITH, IF YOU PUT A GIANT PURPLE CHICKEN NEXT TO THE ROAD, EVERYONE WILL SLOW DOWN A LITTLE BIT. AND ALSO, IF THERE ARE PEOPLE, IF THERE ARE TREES, IF THERE'S THINGS TO LOOK AT, PEOPLE SLOW DOWN. SO THE DESIGN OF FACILITIES SIGNIFICANTLY IMPACTS SPEED. WE HAVE TO INCORPORATE THAT CONCEPT INTO I-35 AND INTO NORTH LAMAR AND INTO EVERY STREET. AND WE -- THERE'S MORE WORK TO BE DONE THERE, SYSTEMATICALLY, ACROSS THE STATE. SO THAT WE DON'T NECESSARILY GET HOME FAST, BUT WE ALL GET HOME. SO THANK YOU ALL VERY MUCH. >> THANK YOU, MR. CROSLEY. WE WILL BE GOING INTO EXECUTIVE SESSION TODAY. BUT BEFORE WE DO, I WANT TO CHECK TO SEE IF THERE'S ANY OPENING COMMENT CARDS? HEARING NONE, AT THIS TIME, WE WILL RECESS TO EXECUTIVE SERVINGS IN AID CORDS AND WITH GOVERNMENT CODE SECTION 551.071. FOR THE RECORD, THE TIME IS 3:53. (RECESSED INTO EXECUTIVE SESSION). >> THE COMMISSION HAS CONCLUDED ITS EXECUTIVE SESSION AND THE MEETING OF THE TEXAS DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION IS RECONVENED. FOR THE RECORD, THE TIME IS 5:08 P.M. BECAUSE WE HAVE ALREADY CONDUCTED OPEN COMMENT PORTION OF OUR MEETING AND ALL OF THE ITEMS ON TODAY'S AGENDA ARE COMPLETED, IS THERE ANY OTHER BUSINESS TO COME BEFORE THE COMMISSION? HEARING NONE, MAY I HAVE A MOTION TO ADJOURN? >> SO MOVED. >> THANK YOU, COMMISSIONER RYAN. MAY I HAVE A SECOND? >> SECOND. >> THANK YOU, COMMISSIONER VAUGHN. ALL IN FAVOR PLEASE SAY "AYE." >> AYE. >> AYE. ANY OPPOSED IN MOTION PASSES UNANIMOUSLY. WE STAND ADJOURNED. THANK YOU. (5:08 P.M.)