Tempe’s real time operation center has become a focal point of the city’s efforts to ensure a safe living environment, especially children, teachers and other school staff. That’s one of the reasons for an upcoming panel discussion on Saturday, Aug. 17, from 9-11 a.m. at Tempe Council Chambers, 31 E. Fifth St., garden level.
Panelists include Tempe City Manager Rosa Inchausti; Chief Deputy City Manager Greg Ruiz; Tempe Police Chief Kenneth McCoy; Tempe Union High School District Asst. Superintendent Sean McDonald; and Tempe IT Director Jared Morris. Councilmember Berdetta Hodge, who is hosting the program, said the program represents one outcome of an ongoing effort to identify and solve safety concerns.
“Our residents have told us that safety is a top priority,” she said. “We’ve listened and are taking action. Our city is doing so much to make our streets and our community safer. This is an excellent way to get an understanding of it all.”
According to officials, Tempe is taking action in several ways to make roads safer for everyone, such as installing speed cameras, enhanced enforcement and operation center. The facility opened last month. The technology pools facilities cameras installed at hundreds of traffic, park and facilities around Tempe so that police staff can easily review footage to determine what happened in traffic incidents, keep officers and drivers safer during incidents, resolve crimes and tend to infrastructure needs, like graffiti removal or replacing landscaping.
Some Tempe schools have added external cameras to the network for greater safety. This fall, speed and red light cameras will be installed at several Tempe intersections to help induce people to slow down. According to the U.S. Department of Transportation, cameras can reduce crashes by more than 50%.
A map designating camera locations can be viewed at tempe.gov/VisionZero.
Tempe is one of 45 cities across the nation to participate in Vision Zero, an effort to reduce or eliminate the number of serious and injuries caused by collisions. City safety planners have targeted 14 intersections around the city for intensive traffic enforcement. These intersections were chosen based on a statistical analysis of a higher propensity for collisions. Sites of the enforcement priorities can be viewed at tempe.gov/VisionZero. For those attending the Aug. 17 program, breakfast will be provided.
Tour times are 9 a.m., 9:30 a.m., 10 a.m. and 10:30 a.m. Space is limited. To RSVP to cepand_alizadeh@ tempe.gov or call 480-350-8597. tempe.gov/Hodge.
