Don't Mess With Texas

[TxDoc]

Dallas ready to get tough on speeders

By Gordon Dickson and Bill Miller

Star-Telegram Staff Writers

 

DALLAS - Motorists who see police cars driving in side-by-side formation on Dallas freeways may want to think twice about passing.

 

This week, Dallas police unveiled an aggressive plan to crack down on speeders, using techniques such as rolling blockades in which patrol cars drive the speed limit and pull over motorists who pass them.

 

The blockades are a time-tested technique used by police departments nationwide as a short-term fix for roads where speed limits are chronically ignored, officers in other cities say.

 

However, one of those agencies hasn't used rolling blockades in recent years out of concern that motorists would complain that the patrol cars were contributing to congestion in the Baltimore-Washington, D.C., area. The blockades were popular in the 1970s and 1980s, Maryland state police Cpl. Rob Moroney said.

 

"That's a good, effective method because it backs up traffic," he said. "But now, with the advent of cellphones, I'm quite sure that if we did a barricade like that, the people would make a lot of calls to complain about us causing backups."

 

For years, police in the Metroplex have been looking for ways to slow traffic. In Bedford, police regularly team up to catch offenders on Airport Freeway. Typically, one officer will park atop a freeway overpass and use a laser speed detector to determine how fast a vehicle is going. When a speeder is detected, the officer will broadcast a description of the vehicle on a police radio, and a patrol car waiting on the side of the road will chase down the offender.

 

With four officers working as a team, up to 75 tickets can be written in a half-day using the overpasses, officers in several cities said.

 

On Monday, Dallas Police Chief Terrell Bolton said the aim of the program is to reduce traffic fatalities. Last year, 169 people were killed in Dallas wrecks.

 

The plan, designed by the Police Department's Traffic Unit, involves a more robust police presence, coupled with new deployment methods, on streets and freeways in Dallas.

 

"I'm telling these officers to have zero tolerance," Bolton said during a news conference in the parking lot of Reunion Arena. "In the event that people don't comply, here's the hammer, and we're going to use the hammer."

 

The initiative is dubbed SMART, an acronym that means: Secure all occupants with seat belts; Monitor speed; Avoid distractions; Recognize hazards; and Take responsibility, Bolton said.

 

The SMART program will use marked and unmarked patrol cars that will watch for motorists who break traffic laws or drive too aggressively, especially in school zones, where 33 children were injured last year in Dallas.

 

"This is all being done with on-duty personnel," Sgt. Vince Aurentz said. "We're just refocusing our efforts."

 

For now, the SMART program is a yearlong initiative, but police might extend it, Aurentz said.

 

"Most murders are crimes of passion," he said. "There's really not a whole lot we can do as police to stop them, but traffic fatalities are different. With national statistics, we can show that if you slow traffic down, you can reduce traffic accidents and fatalities."

 

Using unmarked police cars is common nationwide, Moroney said. Maryland state police have an Operation Stealth program in which an officer in an unmarked car drives up and down a dangerous stretch of roadway looking for drivers who are misbehaving, he said.

 

That's just another of the many creative alternatives available to police, he said.

 

"Another time, I got in a state highway department dump truck," said Moroney, who was a traffic officer for more than 14 years. "I set up in the bed of the truck in a lawn chair with a laser unit and picked off speeders. Just around the corner was a stopping team. From 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. on a Saturday morning, we wrote 78 citations."

[bowtiebob]

Since I am from rural North Central Washington, I can't really comment on the actual situation in Dallas.  However, to me this just seems like a press to make even more money.  In my home county, you cannot drive a 20 mile stretch of highway without seeing several State Troopers watching for speeders. You have to understand, these is very low traffic highways.  Today when we went snowmobiling, we met 1 civilian and 3 Troopers.  For the taxpayer, this 3 to 1 ratio is unacceptable.  I believe this is becoming a national trend.  With more pressing issues such as illegal aliens, terrorists, and tension overseas, I think we could afford to miss the occasional traffic infraction.

 

This is just my opinion.  I in no way mean to disrespect the hardworking police officers out there.

[Torque Junkie]

That wouldn't go over well up here..... The cops would catch up to all the old people who go 10 under the limit side by side and have to slow down.

[Elwood]

I'll have to say I don't have a problem with it.  Where I'm from there is no way near that much traffic, yet there were MANY MANY fatalities because of reckless driving and speeding.  They lowered the speed limit and really cracked down on speeders and the number of wrecks dropped drastically.

 

Yes, now everyone makes fun of my hometown and calls it a speed trap, because there are so many police cars out there on the highway clocking traffic, but it worked.  And if you lost a friend or family member in an accident on this highway, the only complaint you would have is that you wished they had taken these measures sooner, so that maybe it would've saved your loved one.

 

I'm a speeder when I get on the interstate, however I slow to the speed limit in residential or business districts with alot of access ramps and I don't ever complain if I get pulled over.  WHY?  Because I'm breaking the law, if you do it, then know that you can get caught.

[elboberino]

That really wouldn't work in Phoenix.  I know it's probably said everywhere but people in Phoenix, including cops, go 10 over the posted speed, almost all the time.  I mean, if you need to get through traffic, follow the cop cause he'll be going faster than anyone and most people change lanes when the cops are behind them so if you stay behind the cop, you can beat the traffic.

 

Bob

[99silveradoz71]

We don't do much interstate work, but our neighboring city does under a grant...they write at 70 in the 60 zone from what I've heard...when we work laser from the bridge, we write at 80.  A lot of this is just being aware of what's around you and using moderation with your driving behavior.