Minnesota is at the forefront as traffic leaders across the U.S. develop the next generation of tools to ensure we all make safe driving decisions and prevent crashes that change lives forever — or even end them prematurely.

The Governors Highway Safety Association (GHSA) elected Office of Traffic Safety (OTS) Director Mike Hanson as chair last month during its annual meeting, recognizing his leadership and passion for traffic safety that has only grown after decades of public service.

Hanson’s dedication to helping all Minnesotans get home safely to our loved ones started on the road with the Minnesota State Patrol more than 30 years ago. He spent much of his time responding to crashes and witnessing families experience the heartbreak of losing a loved one. 

“I firmly believe that everything we do at OTS and GHSA prevents those crashes from happening in the first place. We just need to get better at it,” Hanson said. “Together, we can prevent and eliminate those needless tragedies.”

GHSA serves as the representative for the 50 state highway safety offices — and the five U.S. territories — and acts as an advocate for the states and for traffic safety issues in general. GHSA works closely with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) and other federal agencies to promote best practices and bring attention to traffic safety trends and issues.

As chair, Hanson will continue to bring state and national traffic safety leaders together with elected officials to share ideas about how we can all work together to make our traffic safety programs more effective and efficient.

Top among his priorities: working with the federal Department of Transportation on a five-year bill to fund NHTSA and the state highway safety offices. Having a strong advocate for the states ensures that we receive the resources and the tools necessary to improve road safety.

What does that mean for you? Your loved ones will be safer because we’ll have what we need to encourage drivers to make smarter choices behind the wheel. For example, GHSA grants helped OTS fund Minnesota’s drug recognition evaluator program, which helps law enforcement agencies across the state get impaired drivers off the road, so you can get home safely this holiday season. 

GHSA also provided our state experts with a unique data set in Hennepin County, including cell phone app data we had never before had access to, which gives us an entirely new perspective on distracted driving in Minnesota’s most populous county.

“The more data we can use and process, the better we can adjust our approach with changing driver trends,” Hanson said. “That’s what’s driving us in the direction we need to go. That’s how we’re going to build the next generation of traffic safety solutions.” ​