SAN DIEGO -- An online crime-mapping program that will allow San Diego County residents to get a snapshot of crime in neighborhoods was unveiled Monday by District Attorney Bonnie Dumanis and other local leaders.

The San Diego County Regional Crime Mapping Application for Public Safety, or MAPS project, is one of the few sites in the nation that compiles data across multiple jurisdictions, and includes information such as crimes, arrests, traffic collisions and citations.

The MAPS project -- made possible by a $200,000 grant -- replaces an existing crime-mapping application and is available at www.arjis.org.

The Internet-based mapping system allows the user to get crime information throughout San Diego County by region, neighborhood, date and time.

"This new and improved service will allow San Diego area residents to get information about crime near their homes, schools or when looking to move to another neighborhood, while providing law enforcement with a regional approach to fighting crime," Dumanis said.

The project -- 18 months in the making -- is being coordinated by the District Attorney's Office and managed by the Automated Regional Justice Information System -- or ARJIS. It also involves representatives from the San Diego Association of Governments' Public Safety Committee, local law enforcement agencies and the community.

"This is a significant milestone in regional collaboration," said Chula Vista Mayor Steve Padilla, chairman of SANDAG's Public Safety Committee.

"This important Web-based resource will help citizens, law enforcement and policymakers by providing information on criminals and crime to help improve the safety of our communities," he said.

The MAPS project allows for the sharing of criminal justice-related information across jurisdictional boundaries and enhances interagency communication, intelligence gathering, strategic planning, homeland security and crime prevention efforts.

The goal was to improve on the previous site by making it more versatile and user-friendly, and to provide more search options, including a longer time frame.

Citizens can look at crime information for up to a year, said Julie Wartell, crime analyst administrator for the District Attorney's Office.

The site allows the public to conduct geographic searches by address, neighborhood, ZIP code, school, hospital, city, council district and supervisorial district, as well as incident type, date, time of day and day of the week.

"It's a tremendous way to empower our communities," Dumanis said.