HARRISBURG – More than 19,000 aggressive drivers felt the pinch in their wallets in July and now police departments across the state are warning would-be aggressive drivers that they’ll be looking for them again during the third wave of Smooth Operator enforcement, which runs from Aug. 5-11.
More than 150 municipal police departments and the Pennsylvania State Police will be patrolling the highways and issuing citations during Smooth Operator, which targets aggressive driving, the leading cause of highway fatalities in Pennsylvania. Last year, 909 of the state’s 1,525 traffic fatalities were related to aggressive driving.
During the second wave of enforcement in July, police issued 19,014 citations and made 362 arrests. Police cited 15,089 people for aggressive driving, such as speeding, tailgating, running red lights or stop signs and making unsafe lane changes. Roads were targeted based on statistics that showed a high frequency of aggressive-driving crashes.
In addition, 774 citations were issued for failure to wear a seat belt; 3,151 citations were issued for other traffic violations.
PennDOT is investing $2 million in the Smooth Operator program to support police training, overtime and equipment, such as wireless infrared speed detectors.
Smooth Operator enforcement will continue with a fourth wave Sept. 2-15.