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Published on Tuesday, May 13, 2004
in the Capitol News Service
The Florida Highway Patrol is cracking down on aggressive commercial truck drivers. FHP says reports are on the rise of truckers taking risks on the road, and as Victoria Langley reports, the agency is putting all available troopers on Florida's highways for Operation Safe Ride.
It's intimidating to look in the mirror and see a big rig bearing down on you, and for good reason. Heavy trucks and tractor trailers were involved in 85-hundred crashes in 2002. 310 people were killed.
Dennis McCarthy drives from Clearwater to Mississippi every month. He says he's seen his share of aggressive truckers.
"What they do is tailgate," McCarthy said. "They want you to speed because they want to speed and they're too lazy to go in the passing lane."
The Florida Highway Patrol is conducting a two-day crackdown on aggressive truckers. Troopers are running radar and targeting truckers who tailgate, speed, and weave through traffic.
Trooper Joe Joyce says big rig road rage can easily turn deadly.
"You're talking about 80-thousand pounds going down the road at 80-plus miles an hour tailgating somebody and they can't stop," Joyce said.
The Florida Truckers Association says it supports the crackdown on aggressive truckers. Spokesman Charles Brantley says he hopes the effort encourages all police agencies to take road rage more seriously.
With truckers communicating with each other about the crackdown, troopers say they may not have as many tickets to write. But if the rigs slow down and drive more safely, then FHP says it accomplished its mission.
The Florida Highway Patrol conducted a two-day aggressive driving crackdown on car and light-truck drivers in February. Troopers issued 663 citations statewide for aggressive driving. More than 47-hundred speeding tickets were issued.