The Benton Police Department worked 15% fewer traffic crashes during the month of July compared to last July’s numbers.  Officers worked 89 crashes during July compared to 104 crashes during July of 2010.   

This reduction is attributed to additional traffic campaigns the department has been conducting in the hopes of keeping our citizen’s safe.  Recently the department has conducted additional speeding, DWI, and seatbelt enforcement to help meet this goal.

The campaigns are not designed to just catch violators, but ultimately they educate drivers of the dangers involved in not obeying the law.  Speed was a factor in 30% of traffic related fatalities in 2010, and was second only to alcohol (39%) as a cause for crashes.  Distracted driving was a close third (20%) as a factor contributing to traffic crashes, especially among teenagers and young adults. 

Officers will be conducting additional speeding enforcement, DWI checkpoints, and seatbelt enforcement in the coming months to further decrease the crashes in the city.  With school starting back officers will also be looking for violators who pass stopped school buses, speeding in school zones, and other school related traffic issues.  Additionally, there will be a campaign to educate teenagers in our community about the dangers of distracted driving coming soon. 

For more information on traffic safety please go to www.nhtsa.gov (National Highway and Traffic Safety Administration) or www.distraction.gov