State officials reported that twelve people’s lives have been claimed on Georgia roads over the Labor Day holiday.
Three fatalities occurred in the metro Atlanta area - in the City of Atlanta, Cherokee County and DeKalb County. Nine other fatal crashes took place outside the metro Atlanta area - in Gainesville, LaGrange, Griffin, Monroe, Dublin, Valdosta, Lafayette and Hinesville. Last year, there were 2,401 traffic accidents, 1,069 traffic-related injuries and nineteen traffic-related fatalities during the 78-hour holiday period.
The grim report comes despite increased patrol campaigns. The holiday period is designated as an Operation C.A.R.E. (Combined Accident Reduction Effort), a U.S. and Canada traffic safety initiative that unites law enforcement officials in an effort to reduce traffic fatalities.
Additionally, Georgia state and local troopers have adopted Operation Zero Tolerance (OZT) since August 20th. Traffic enforcement officers conduct high visibility checkpoints and intensify patrolling across the state. During OZT, impaired drivers do not receive a warning or citation, but instead are directly sent to jail if their blood alcohol level exceeds the legal limit of 0.08. Georgia’s statewide OZT ended Monday, September 6, with the end of the Labor Day holiday.
Based on the National Crash Clock set by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, 2010 traffic fatalities are occurring at an average rate of every fourteen minutes. In 2008, 12,000 traffic fatalities involved impaired drivers. Based on statistics, the National Crash Clock provides survival guidelines for drivers, such as avoiding driving at night, as thirty six percent of traffic fatalities involving impaired drivers occurred at night. Also, caution should be practiced while driving on weekends, as thirty two percent of traffic fatalities involving impaired drivers occurred over weekends.
Along with the state officials’ efforts in mobilizing OZT is the H.E.A.T. “Highway Enforcement of Aggressive Traffic” crackdown on speeders. Labor Day 2010 marked the seventh consecutive year that the state enacts its “100 Days of Summer H.E.A.T.”, a campaign designed to reduce highway fatalities by cracking down on high-speed drivers, impaired motorists and unbuckled vehicle occupants. The campaign takes effect in conjunction with the Super Speeder Law that was signed in January 2010. The Law tacks on an additional $200 to drivers speeding over 75 mph on two-lane roads and over 85 mph anywhere.
Comments