Local law

Local law

enforcement

watching for

aggressive

drivers

Law enforcement throughout the Old Dominion will he concentrating on aggressive driving, a combination of traffic violations that endanger the lives of others, during this • week with special attention through March 21.

Stepped-up patrols will be • on the lookout for drivers displaying anger at the wheel and using their vehicles virtually as a weapon. This behav-] ior, identified by law enforce-; ment nationally in 1990, often ' involves multiple offenses tak-! ing place over a series of miles.

In some cases, a driver will brandish or use a gun or a tire iron to threaten another motorist for what he or she. perceives to be a deliberate] attempt to prevent him or her ; from changing lanes or driving at the desired speed.

“A report by AAA notes" that every year since 1990, at least 1,500 people have been killed or injured in the United States because of enraged, '• aggressive drivers,” says Lt. ] Col. W. Gerald Massengill,1 director of field operations. from the Virginia Department ] of State Police.

The patrols are part of Smart, Safe and Sober,. Virginia’s high visibility,*; statewide traffic-enforcement! program. Aimed at reducing ] the state’s death and injury ; rate on the highways, the program focuses on a different driving danger every calendar quarter, while enforcing occu- 1 pant-restraint laws throughout the year.

For that reason, officers ' also will be enforcing ] Virginia’s safety belt and child safety seat laws. The Virginia Department of Motor Vehicles estimates that at least 168 people per year are saved by 1 such occupant restraints. ]

Smart, Safe and Sober is a • joint program of the Virginia Association of Chiefs of Police, 1 Virginia Sheriff’s Association, Virginia Department of State Police, Virginia Department of; Motor Vehicles, the Virginia • Commonwealth University ! Transportation Safety; Training Center and Drive ; Smart Virginia.

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