Vernon Betkey, Jr., GHSA Chairman and Director of the Maryland Highway Safety Office

Vernon F. Betkey, Jr., GHSA Chairman

Director, Maryland Highway Safety Office
Maryland Highway Safety Coordinator

Vernon Betkey serves as the Maryland Highway Safety Coordinator and as the Director of the Maryland Highway Safety Office. He is responsible for the State’s Highway Safety Program, the application and management of federal highway safety behavioral program funds, the Safe Routes to School Program, and he is the project manager for the Maryland Strategic Highway Safety Plan.

Vernon served more than 25 years with the Maryland State Police retiring on June 1, 1998. His MSP career included several command positions and more than seven years of direct interaction, planning, and implementation of many Maryland highway safety projects and programs. Upon retiring, he was appointed as the Chief of Staff for the Maryland Transportation Authority Police. He drafted the department's reorganization plan and started its first special traffic enforcement unit. He was recruited for and accepted the position of Law Enforcement Liaison for the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration Region 3 Office in Baltimore before accepting his current position as Director of the Maryland Highway Safety Office.

During his career, Vernon has participated in a wide variety of highway safety initiative, programs, and projects, and he served on several state and national committees and task forces involved with issues such as highway safety legislation, occupant protection, child passenger safety, bicycle safety, impaired driving, and speed. Through his efforts, Maryland became the second State in the nation to introduce LASER speed enforcement into their highway safety program. He also spearheaded the initiative that brought the cellular telephone reporting program #77 to Maryland making the State one of the first in the Nation to have cellular reporting.

During his tenure with the Maryland Highway Safety Office, Maryland has succeeded in increasing the seat belt use rate to 93.3%, and built a strong statewide highway safety network with both top down and bottom up support. He is a very passionate and committed highway safety advocate who believes that a goal of zero highway deaths is attainable.

Vernon is active in several local and national highway safety organizations. He has served on the Executive Board of the Governors Highway Safety Association (GHSA) since September 2003 as a Regional Representative, Board Treasurer, Chairman of the Finance and Operations Committee, member of the Awards Committee, Vice-Chairman, and was elected to the Chairman’s position in September 2008.

Vernon has a Bachelor of Science Degree in Business Management from the University of Maryland University College, and he is a graduate of the Northwestern University, Center for Public Safety, School of Police Staff and Command.

Contact Jonathan Adkins, GHSA Communications Director, at 202-789-0942, ext. 14 or jadkins@ghsa.org.if you have any questions or would like more information.