Watertown Police officers will have their eye out for speeding and aggressive drivers.
The intensified enforcement effort against speeding and aggressive drivers underscores the severity of the problem locally and nationwide, according to the announcement from the police.
“Speeding greatly reduces a driver’s ability to steer safely around another vehicle, a hazardous object, or an unexpected curve. Speeding drivers put themselves, their passengers, and other drivers at tremendous risk,” said Watertown Police Sgt. David Sampson.
According to the U.S. Department of Transportation’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), in 2012 speeding was a contributing factor in more than a third of all fatal crashes in Massachusetts.
Aggressive driving includes many unlawful and dangerous actions, such as exceeding posted speed limits, driving too fast for road conditions, changing lanes without signaling or yielding to other drivers, and improper passing, Sampson said.
“By consistently enforcing traffic laws, increasing fines and other penalties against offenders, and impressing upon citizens the importance of their own safe driving habits, we can show that this dangerous behavior won’t be tolerated” Sampson said.
For more information, please visit www.mass.gov/highwaysafety.