Published on Friday, March 4, 2005
in the Naples Daily News

Troopers crack down to change driving attitudes

A skyrocketing number of deaths on Lee and Collier roadways has the Florida Highway Patrol shifting gears: Instead of responding to accidents, it is increasing its efforts to stop them from happening.

Starting today, a group of five state troopers from the two-county area will be working specifically to crack down on common accident-causing offenses in problem areas on the roads.

They'll be called the Community Response Team. They'll be back again the next day, and the next.

Troopers are expecting to write as many as 1,000 traffic tickets a week in Lee and Collier counties as part of the continuing effort.

Despite that, FHP Sgt. Daniel Taylor said the effort is more about changing people's bad driving behavior than issuing citations.

"It's all about attitude," he said. "It's all about the way you choose to drive on the highways."

Few large-scale traffic accidents with many deaths associated with one crash are driving up the numbers of dead on area roads. Instead, Taylor said troopers are "slammed" every day with wrecks.

At the end of February, the number of fatalities in Lee County was near 30 for 2005, he said. It stood at 19 at the same time last year. Twelve people died in Lee County traffic accidents in January, according to FHP statistics. Three died in January the year before.

The number of deaths is lower for Collier County, but still troublesome, Taylor said.

Exact figures for February's traffic deaths in both counties were not available Thursday.

Even crashes that don't prove fatal are causing problems daily. On Interstate 75, the Corkscrew Road, Alico Road and Daniels Parkway exits are the worst in Lee County, Taylor said.

Alligator Alley in particular is a problem, as well as some southern parts of U.S. 41, he added.

Concerned about the way the year looks to be shaping up, FHP has been vocal about the problem. Following the deaths in January, it issued a public appeal for drivers to take care.

This week, FHP Capt. Eddie Johnson said the agency is committed to addressing the issue.

"Only time will tell if the record number of traffic fatalities occurring in Southwest Florida will continue," he said in a statement Thursday announcing the new CRT program. "Curbing the rise of traffic-related fatalities occurring in our area is at the top of our agenda."

Since the January number of fatalities was announced, the FHP has dealt with the issue using traditional methods, putting hundreds of troopers on the roads for brief periods for high-profile special enforcements.

On Feb. 24, it conducted a 24-hour effort called Operation Safe Ride that yielded 6,065 citations statewide, 3,242 for speeding.

Taylor said organized efforts have taken place locally as well.

In a coordinated effort between Lee and Collier troopers last summer, the FHP took to the highway in teams at sunrise and sunset, setting up groups at 10-mile intervals along I-75. They wrote 512 citations, 323 of which were for speeding.

By the end of the day, there was a 66 percent reduction in aggressive driving, Taylor said. But, he added, the next day was business as usual on the area's highways.

The CRT program will be different, according to the FHP.

Troopers from the team will be on the streets five days a week working special operations, Taylor said. For two weeks, they might target violations in commercial vehicles, then speeders for the rest of the month, he said.

Troopers will use unmarked units, specialty cars meant to catch speeders and construction zone equipment, the FHP said.

Troopers also can catch speeders by aiming their radar detectors at the road from above, using cherry pickers, overpasses or even airplanes, Taylor said.

The problems can't be isolated to one behavior or place.

Taylor said there are some intersections in the county where people are flagrantly ignoring the right of way. In other areas, drivers ride up the dirt side of the road or on the median to make a turn.

"People feel they have the privilege or right to (violate traffic laws) so they can get some place faster," Taylor said.

Part of the CRT program will be educational, getting information out about the risks of aggressive driving.

But tickets also will be written. The CRT team won't be issuing any warnings, Taylor said.

For some people, the only way to get their attention is through cash fines or points on their driving record, he said.

Drivers and troopers aren't the only ones watching traffic woes.

Ileana LiMarizi, spokeswoman for the Lee County Sheriff's Office, said the agency tries to aggressively patrol two areas of the county for traffic violations daily, she said. In mid-February, it conducted a 12-hour special enforcement directed at traffic during which 653 tickets were written in 21 locations across the county. More than 900 stops were made overall, according to the Sheriff's Office.

The Sheriff's Office isn't planning, however, to develop a program similar to the FHP effort.

"Our traffic unit is basically already a CRT," she said.