PennDOT is partnering with local law enforcement and State Police in cracking down on aggressive driving in southwestern Pennsylvania now through March 27. Jay Ofsanik of PennDOT says they've been doing these "aggressive driving enforcement waves" since 2006 to reduce crashes and fatalities.....
"Speeding, tailgating someone, improper passing, weaving in and out of traffic, people who run red lights, do 'boulevard' (rolling) stops at stop signs instead of coming to a complete stop, are the types of behaviors police are looking for."
Ofsanik says they look at particular crash records and then determine the roadways that have a high incident rate of aggressive driving and then have police specifically target those roads.
PennDOT uses grants from the Federal Highway Administration to reimburse local police departments and state police for any extra costs including overtime.
According to Ofsanik, over the next 5 weeks they will be targeting 83 roads in the Pittsburgh region including Route 51 in Westmoreland County, Route 30 near Greensburg, Route 22 in Murrysville, Route 19 in McCandless Township, Route 50 in Collier Township and the Interstates.
He says the program has been effective citing the example of a stretch of Route 51 between Fayette and Westmoreland Counties. Ofsanik says prior to the program starting in 2006, there were 6 fatalities in 5 years in that corridor. But since the crackdown, there have been no fatalities in the last 5 years