98 traffic safety initiatives get funding from provincial government

Some people who got caught speeding in Saskatchewan are helping to fund traffic safety initiatives in 92 communities in the province.

On Wednesday, the provincial government announced 98 initiatives that are to share $1.18 million in funding from the Provincial Traffic Safety Fund Grant program.

The fund, which awards grants twice a year, uses a portion of the proceeds generated by photo radar in the province.

The funding will help manage speed, improve school zone safety and install pedestrian crosswalks in rural, urban and Indigenous communities across the province.

This round of grants ranges from $502 for intersection awareness in the RM of Mount Hope to $53,685 for Phase 1 of a pedestrian safety initiative project in the town of Biggar.

“The Provincial Traffic Safety Fund Grant program is incredibly important in funding projects to improve safety on Saskatchewan roads,” Don Morgan, the minister responsible for SGI, said in a media release. “I’d like to thank all communities for applying, and for the work they do to reduce traffic collisions, injuries and fatalities in our province.”

To be eligible for funding, the traffic safety initiatives must focus on a specified priority area such as speeding, impaired driving, distracted driving, occupant protection and intersection safety.

A committee comprising representatives from the Saskatchewan Urban Municipalities Association, the Saskatchewan Association of Rural Municipalities, the Prince Albert Grand Council, the Saskatchewan Association of Chiefs of Police, the Ministry of Justice, the Ministry of Highways and SGI then determines which projects should receive grants.

The deadline for applications for the next round of grants is March 31.