ADECA and Law Enforcement Team Up to Reduce Deadly Crashes
The Alabama Department of Economic and Community Affairs is partnering with law enforcement officers for Operation Southern Shield to reduce the number of crashes due to speeding. While summer is a time for vacationing, it’s also a time that the risk of deadly car crashes are at its highest.
“It’s a very high travel period for people that are vacationing and these are people that live in our area as well as people that are coming through to go to the beach and to other attractions,” says Public Safety Unit Chief Bill Whatley.
That’s why Operation Southern Shield will be in full effect throughout the state and the southeast, July 17th through the 23rd.
What can people expect during that time?
“We put a lot of efforts out there on the roadways with radars to let people see marked units out there,let them know that we’re slowing you down,” says Sheriff Derrick Cunningham of the Montgomery Sheriff’s Department.
“By enforcing these laws it makes it safer for residents and tourists alike,’ says Whatley.
Officials say speed is the number one cause of fatalities on the road in Alabama. In fact, officials say in 2015 it accounted for 28 percent of deadly crashes and with this campaign. They’re hoping people are more aware of their actions behind the wheel.
“These are a hundred percent preventable so by lowering your speeds it’s safer for passengers and drivers alike,” says Whatley.
“Deputies are working overtime to patrol some of our highways, some of our roadways, to help control the speeding problem,” says Cunningham.
So after you buckle up, they’re asking you to keep your eyes on the road and slow down.
“Hopefully you’ll see these marked units and you’ll slow down on your own,” says Cunningham.
