Rhonda Craft Tabbed as New Director for Office of Traffic Safety

SACRAMENTO, Calif., April 28, 2014 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Today the California Office of Traffic Safety (OTS) announced the swearing in of Rhonda Craft as the new OTS Director. Ms. Craft has assumed the dual duties of OTS Director and the Governor's Representative for Highway Safety to the federal government.  She comes to the Office of Traffic Safety from the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV), where her last position was as Chief of the Driver Safety Branch.

"I have a passion for traffic safety and I am honored to be a part of the OTS family," said Director Craft.

At the DMV, Ms. Craft spent more than 30 years in several capacities, including implementing policy and legislative initiatives to improve overall traffic safety and reduce fatal and serious injury crashes on California's roadways. She helped establish California's Strategic Highway Safety Plan and serves on the Board of Directors for Safety Center Incorporated, where pedestrian and bicycle safety play a prominent role.  Ms. Craft has worked with numerous organizations committed to improving street and highway safety, including the American Association of Motor Vehicle Administrators, the National Highway Safety Administration, and the Department of Transportation.  

As OTS Director, Ms. Craft is charged with administering the California Traffic Safety Program, which includes preparing an annual comprehensive Highway Safety Plan to reduce victims killed and injured in traffic crashes and publishing an Annual Performance Report that details the accomplishments and progress of the California Traffic Safety Program. She will be responsible for the administration, distribution and management of more than $70 million annually in traffic safety grants.

Ms. Craft will be setting annual strategic goals that include working collaboratively with the California State Transportation Agency, of which OTS is a part, other state departments, local agencies and many traffic safety oriented organizations to move forward and extend the reach of OTS programs that have helped California reach one of the lowest mileage death rates in the country.