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County traffic committee considers cognitive driver screening tool, gets toolkit and outreach updates
Summary
The committee reviewed a roadside cognitive screening tool for law enforcement, received a communications toolkit for traffic safety commissions and heard emergency-management plans for centralized public information during incidents.
The committee heard about two tools county officials are weighing to support traffic safety and emergency response: a short roadside cognitive screening aid for law enforcement and a communications toolkit to centralize information during incidents.
Todd Horn presented a nine-question screening card used in other states to help officers assess potential cognitive impairment during traffic stops. Horn described scoring guidance included on the reverse of the card: 0–2 incorrect answers typically requires no referral; 3–4 may prompt a driver condition report; 5 or more results in a recommendation to follow department procedures for alternative transportation and referral. He said the tool is intended to be used after alcohol and drug impairment have been ruled out and that the Department of Motor Vehicles supports use of the instrument to gather roadside information, though the state’s formal acceptance was still in process.
Brandon Lars and emergency management staff described recent work to centralize emergency information on the county website and to provide a single live link the media and public can use in a flood or other disaster. "If it's a flood or something like that, we would work with IT and get a button right on the home page. You clicked on that, and that's where the list of resources are based on, you know, what municipality you live in," Brandon Lars said.
The Bureau of Transportation Safety also highlighted a new speed trailer arriving to the committee and a predictive-analytics grant that will support data-driven enforcement and community outreach.
No formal adoption of the screening tool or new communications policy occurred; staff were asked to circulate materials and apps referenced and consider training options for officers and TSC members.
