HARRISBURG – PennDOT is cracking down on the No. 1 cause of highway fatalities by announcing today that its Smooth Operator program is expanding statewide.
“Aggressive driving has become the leading factor in fatal accidents on our roadways,” said PennDOT Secretary Allen D. Biehler, P.E. “Smooth Operator gives us an opportunity to focus on those behaviors and improve highway safety.”
PennDOT is investing $2 million into Smooth Operator enforcement efforts, which will include 15 Pennsylvania State Police troops and 175 local police departments. Police will conduct five weeks of aggressive driving enforcement that will run from March 25-31, July 1-7, August 5-11 and September 2-15. Police will be targeting aggressive driving behaviors including speeding, tailgating, running red lights or stop signs and unsafe lane changes.
PennDOT’s funding will pay for police training and overtime, and equipment such as wireless infrared speed detectors. In addition, state and local police departments cooperate during enforcement efforts on local roads. State police can run radar or use aircraft to assist local police departments with stopping aggressive drivers.
According to PennDOT, aggressive driving played a role in 1,016 of 1,616 fatalities in Pennsylvania in 2005, the most recent year for which data is available.
“When you see aggressive drivers on the highway, give them wide berth,” said State Police Commissioner Jeffrey B. Miller. “Don’t respond by engaging in aggressive driving behavior yourself. That only serves to put you, your passengers and everyone else on the road, in greater danger.”
Last summer, PennDOT conducted a successful 12-county pilot of Smooth Operator, which resulted in more than 18,000 citations and arrests.
More information about Smooth Operator is available online.