Oregon State Police (OSP) and Oregon Department of Transportation (ODOT) have teamed up to help reduce the incidences of roadway departure crashes. A roadway departure crash is a non-intersection crash when a vehicle either crosses the center line or the edge of the road. Examples of these types of crashes are sideswiping another vehicle, traveling off the roadway and rolling, or hitting a fixed object. According to the US Department of Transportation, roadway departure crashes account for 66 percent of all traffic fatalities in Oregon.
Grant funds have been awarded by ODOT and OSP providing over 1,600 hours of overtime enforcement for specific highway locations that have been identified as some of the worst areas in the state. ODOT identified the highway locations following a review of crash analysis data that pointed at crash types, causes, dates, day(s) of week, and time periods. Some contributing factors to these crashes are speed, failure to maintain a traffic lane, distracted driving, and DUI.