Published on Tuesday, April 19, 2005
in the Melbourne Florida Today

Speeding crackdown starts on I-95

A week after a deadly accident claimed four lives - including two small children - the Brevard County Sheriff's Office is adding patrols along the 72-mile-long highway.

That means the Florida Highway Patrol will have more help in focusing on speeding motorists, aggressive drivers and those traveling on the road while eating, talking on the phone or engaging in other distractions, officials said.

"It's a big problem. The interstate needs some aggressive traffic enforcement right now," said Maj. Joe Ambrose, a traffic patrol coordinator with the sheriff's office. The sheriff's agency worked a month with FHP officials to coordinate the patrols.

Since 2003, there have been 43 fatal crashes on Interstate 95 in Brevard County, said Florida Highway Patrol Lt. Pat O'Neil.

The most recent occurred April 11, just south of U.S. 192. Four people were killed after 29-year-old Ghita Tadlaoui crossed over from the southbound lane to the northbound lane in her Mitsubishi Montero. Her two children and two people in a utility van were killed.

The accident is still under investigation, officials said.

Six people died this year on the interstate compared to four during the same period last year, records show.

The new "Arrive Alive" operation is expected to start today and remain active indefinitely, Ambrose said.

O'Neil hopes the added patrols will get motorists to pay more attention to what he says is ordinarily a mundane drive.

"The interstate is 72 miles long with three major curves. There are no mountains, no lakes, it's a very boring stretch of road," O'Neil said.

He said speed contributed to deadly accidents but was not the only factor.

"It's mostly not paying attention," O'Neil said. "I can't embrace the sheriff's department enough for their efforts in assisting us with this."

Fatalities on I-95 in Brevard

2003:  18

2004:  23

2005:   6

Source: Florida Highway Patrol