Tuesday, March 27, 2007
Patience is a virtue
And likely a key to not getting a ticket on U.S. 1. The Town of Cary has announced an aggressive-driving crackdown for the stretch between Walnut Street and the exits for U.S. 64 and Tryon Road for March 28-29. Cary is making a point about saying where its officers will be and when, as the campaign is "as much about awareness as enforcement."
More of the official word: In an effort to maintain safe driving conditions, the Town of Cary Police Department will kick off its quarterly aggressive driving campaign, entitled "Operation Patient Payoff," on U.S. 1 from Walnut Street to the U.S. 64 and Tryon Road exits Wednesday, March 28-29. As part of the campaign, Cary police are reminding motorists to allow three seconds to pass between their vehicle and the one in front of them, and Police will monitor motorists along the corridor to detect speeding, tailgating and lane change violations.
Motorists may see uniformed officers in police vehicles during the campaign, as well as unmarked cars and motorcycles along the stretch. Officers' vehicles will be equipped with radar, vascar and lidar laser-detection technologies to identify aggressive drivers.
To further help decrease the number of aggressive drivers, Cary has a "Road Watch" hotline for motorists to report aggressive driving at 319-4521. If numerous complaints are received for one particular area, the police department responds by increasing visibility on the street through patrols as well as radar trailers and speed sentries that display speeds to oncoming drivers. For complaints on individual drivers, courtesy letters are sent reminding drivers of the need to slow down.
The campaign comes on the heels of a grant award from the N.C. Governor's Highway Safety Program. In the fall of 2006, the department received a grant award that funded two traffic-safety-team officers, along with two fully equipped vehicles, including radars.
The Town plans to continue the campaign this summer along other town roads. Because this effort is as much about awareness as enforcement, the corridors will be announced before at the start of each campaign.
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