The South Jersey Transportation Planning Organization (SJTPO) is the federally designated Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO) for the southern New Jersey region. It covers the Counties of Atlantic, Cape May, Cumberland, and Salem. Under federal law, MPO's carry out transportation planning and decision making for urbanized areas. Both the Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act of 1991 (ISTEA) and the Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century (TEA-21) called for a renewed emphasis on safety considerations in the metropolitan planning process, authorizing additional funding for public transit, bicycle and pedestrian accessibility, and air quality initiatives; and addressing health and safety through programs to increase seat belt use, reduce crashes at highway-rail crossings, and fight drunk driving through initiatives for states to adopt tough blood alcohol concentration standards. Teaming with the New Jersey Division of Highway Traffic Safety, SJTPO spearheaded the creation of the South Jersey Traffic Safety Alliance in 1998. Since its inception in 1998, the South Jersey Traffic Safety Alliance has helped SJTPO select locations for sidewalks; acquire speed trailers; and identify specific problem locations for the Regional Transportation Plan. In a reciprocating relationship, SJTPO has acted on behalf of Alliance members, reaching out to appropriate members of the County Planning Department, County Engineers, and the New Jersey Department of Transportation, to address specific safety concerns identified by Alliance members.
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