Kansas Gov. Laura Kelly recently announced a $2.69 million Federal grant to upgrade the Kansas Department of Transportation’s (KDOT) vehicle crash data collection systems.
The funding from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) will help to rebuild the Kansas Crash Data System. It also includes the distribution of 1,000 driver’s license scanners to law enforcement to encourage greater adoption of electronic reporting.
“Accurate, timely data is essential for developing strategies to reduce crashes and the severity of injuries,” Gov. Kelly said in a statement. “This funding will modernize the crash data collection process by equipping decision-makers in local communities with better tools to guide transportation planning across Kansas.”
Currently, KDOT’s system receives electronic reports from the Kansas Highway Patrol’s Kansas Law Enforcement Reporting System (KLER). However, the governor’s office said almost half of all Kansas crash data must be entered manually “due to system incompatibilities with many local law enforcement agencies.”
The $2.69 million grant will help to modernize the Kansas Crash Data System and integrate it with local systems statewide.
“KDOT will continue to work with our law enforcement partners to improve the statewide crash data repository,” Transportation Secretary Calvin Reed said. “Ultimately, this initiative will streamline our current processes, improve data accuracy, and provide quicker access to actionable information.”
The Federal grant program reflects a requirement under the 2021 Bipartisan Infrastructure Law that required NHTSA to provide grants to states to upgrade and standardize state crash data systems.
