July 4th is an Independence Day from Drunk Drivers mattmontgomery  at:  7/3/2008   JULY 4 HOLIDAY FATALITY PREDICTIONS ARE IN: GEORGIA SOBRIETY CHECKPOINTS READY TO PUT THE H.E.A.T. ON DRUNK DRIVERS   The Georgia State Patrol (GSP) and the Crash Reporting Unit of the Georgia Department of Transportation have released their predictions for traffic crashes, injuries and fatalities for the 2008 July 4th holiday travel period. Crash analysis experts at GSP and DOT are predicting 2,315 traffic crashes, 1,094 injuries and 23 traffic deaths during the period that begins at 6PM Thursday, July 3rd, and ends at midnight, Sunday, July 6th. Last year during a 30-hour July Fourth holiday travel period in Georgia, there were 643 traffic crashes reported that resulted in 267 injuries and nine traffic fatalities.  Georgia ’s fatal crash stats emphasize the reason more than 500 local police agencies concentrate on DUI traffic enforcement during the Independence Day holiday travel period. In 2007, three of the nine July 4th traffic deaths involved alcohol-impaired drivers. Five people killed were not wearing seat belts.  DOT crash tracking showed that eight-of-the-nine fatal traffic incidents occurred on state highways, county roads and city streets, with only one on Georgia Interstates. State Troopers and DPS Motor Carrier Compliance Division officers will partner with local law enforcement to help save lives on our highways this Fourth. Together, they’ve been enforcing the statewide “Operation Zero Tolerance” impaired driving crackdown since June 20th to get drunk drivers off the highways before Georgia families begin their summer vacation travels. The “OZT” campaignis coordinated each year by the Governor’s Office of Highway Safety (GOHS). GOHS Director Bob Dallas said all motorists should expect to encounter random sobriety checkpoints and concentrated police patrols all across Georgia. Officers will also be ticketing drivers who violate the posted speed limits or fail to buckle-up as part of the “100 Days of Summer H.E.A.T.” enforcement campaign. Here’s why: Last year one-third of Georgia’s highway deaths were speed-related crashes. One-out-of-five crash fatalities in Georgia are alcohol-related. More than 50-percent of Georgia’s fatal crash victims don’t wear safetybelts. To stay sober, stay alive, and stay out of Georgia’s crash-stats this holiday, remember drunk drivers go to jail. “Over The Limit. Under Arrest.” OZT is all about raising survival rates, not ticket revenues. So when you plan to party this holiday, plan first for a designated driver. The Georgia State Patrol will post the holiday traffic count every six hours beginning Friday morning at the DPS website:  http://dps.georgia.gov TO VIEW OTHER GOHS NEWS ITEMS, CLICK HERE TO GO TO THE GOHS HOME PAGE, CLICK HERE         Channel 2 Atlanta Story on Motorcycles and Scooters mattmontgomery  at:  7/1/2008   WSB TV Atlanta News Story on Motorcycles and Scooters Following reports of four motorcycle crashes just in the Atlanta Area yesterday morning, WSB News decided to follow-up on the growing popularity of motorcycles and motor scooters in Georgia and the growing numbers of injury and fatality crashes in our state. The story looks at the reasons behind this growing rider trend:  From Georgia’s popular routes for riders.. the longer riding season.. and the climbing cost of gas that’s propelling the popularity of this fuel-efficient mode of transportation. To view the story, visit: http://www.wsbtv.com/video/16752326/index.html TO VIEW OTHER GOHS NEWS ITEMS, CLICK HERE TO GO TO THE GOHS HOME PAGE, CLICK HERE         Manejar Borracho Es Un Crimen. Sera Arrestado mattmontgomery  at:  6/27/2008   Operation Zero Tolerance on the air with La Raza Governor’s Office of Highway Safety Program Planner Jason Berry and Georgia State Patrol Senior Trooper Larry Schnall at the microphone of the “LaRaza” radio studios in Duluth, Georgia.   Jason and Larry were guests of station Program Director Fernando Cordero for a half-hour interview about the statewide law enforcement mobilization for the GOHS Operation Zero Tolerance campaign. Jason translated as Larry talked about OZT law enforcement strategies and legal penalties for drunk driving in Georgia.  In a solo segment, Jason explained how Georgia’s Hispanic population is over-represented in many injury and fatality crash categories and talked about holiday travel safety precautions for Latino families, with tips for buckling up the kids, driving sober, and choosing a designated driver.   “La Raza” radio reaches an audience of about 100thousand Hispanic listeners in Georgia.  Their community affairs program airs every Monday morning between 7-and-9 AM.  Broadcasting on WLKQ-102.3 and 100.1FM, the interview show is called “Trente Minutos Con La Raza” which translates to “Thirty Minutes With Our People.”   As GSP’s spokesman, Larry Schnall has had years of contact with the news media.  But this was Jason Berry’s first broadcast interview experience.  Together they successfully teamed up to deliver a clear GOHS highway safety message to Georgia’s Hispanic community: Manejar Borracho Es Un Crimen.  Sera Arrestado’. For more on 2008 Summer OZT, visit http://www.gahighwaysafety.org/2008SUMMEROZT/ TO VIEW OTHER GOHS NEWS ITEMS, CLICK HERE TO GO TO THE GOHS HOME PAGE, CLICK HERE         GOHS Travel Safety Tip: Tire Safety mattmontgomery  at:  6/4/2008   NHTSA CONSUMER ADVISORY Motorists Urged to Check Tires Before Summer Trips The risk of a serious crash during hot weather can be heightened by tires that are worn out, under-inflated or too old, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said today. To reduce the risk of a crash, NHTSA Administrator Nicole Nason urged motorists to have tires, including the spare, checked before embarking on a vacation journey. “Protecting you and your family should be your top priority,” said Administrator Nason. “Getting your tires checked will significantly reduce the likelihood of a tire-related crash.” NHTSA research shows that hot weather – and overloaded vehicles – can add significant stress to a tire, especially if it is not properly inflated. Old tires also are subject to greater stress, which increases the likelihood of catastrophic failure. While tire condition is important for all vehicles, it is especially critical for those more prone to rollover when tires fail. That would include sport utility vehicles (SUVs), pickups or other vehicles with a higher center of gravity. Consumers can check tire inflation with an inexpensive gauge, using the vehicle manufacturers’ recommended pressures, which are found on the driver’s side door pillar or in the owner’s manual. The age of the tire can be determined by checking the identification number on the sidewall that begins with the letters "DOT". The last four digits represent the week and year the tire was manufactured. Some tire and vehicle manufacturers have issued recommendations for replacing tires that range from six to ten years of age. Consumers are advised to check with their tire or vehicle manufacturer for specific guidance. “Remember that it is vitally important to check your spare tire too,” said Administrator Nason. “Your spare can be a real safety hazard if it is old or under-inflated.” For more information on proper tire care, along with NHTSA’s tire rating guide, visit www.safercar.gov.   OTHER GOHS NEWS ITEMS GOHS HOME PAGE         Rolling Thunder Task Force: Bartow and Paulding Counties mattmontgomery  at:  6/4/2008   BARTOW-PAULDING HIGH-CRASH CORRIDOR NEW ENFORCEMENT UNIT TURNS H.E.A.T. ON DEADLIEST DRIVERS  Today the Georgia Governor's Office of Highway Safety(GOHS)announced a ninety-day high-visibility roll-out of the newly formed THUNDER TASKFORCE totarget high-risk drivers in Paulding and Bartow County this summer. The GOHS TASKFORCE is a specialized traffic enforcement unit designed to help Georgia communities combat abnormally high occurrences of traffic crashes, injuries and fatalities. The TASKFORCE mission is to help reduce those highway deaths and serious injuries by changing the illegal driving behaviors of motorists in the region through an increased law enforcement presence in those high crash corridors. Paulding and Bartow Counties currently meet that definition of ‘high crash corridor’. Statistically, these counties continue to line-up as the state’s deadliest traffic crash counties outside the Metro Atlanta Area.  Paulding County nowranks Number Seven in the state for traffic fatalities.. and neighboring Bartow County ranks close behind it at Number Nine. . Even more disturbing, Bartow-Paulding County area traffic deaths have already climbed into the deadly double digits in just the first four months of 2008. Ten of those were in Paulding County, with five more in Bartow since January. By the end of 2007, when the number of Paulding County traffic deaths climbed to 27 and traffic deaths in Bartow County totaled 31 for the year, law enforcement authorities in the region asked the Governor's Office of Highway Safety to plan for THUNDER TASKFORCE enforcement support there this summer. The TASKFORCE goal is to show a significant reduction in traffic fatalities and injuries over the coming three-month period. During its inaugural 90-day mobilization last year, OPERATION ROLLING THUNDER successfullyreduced traffic fatalities in the Savannah Area by 58-percent while working with Savannah-Chatham Metro Police. The THUNDER TASKFORCE Teams are composed of officers from the Georgia State Patrol and Georgia Motor Carrier Compliance Division deployed in joint operations with a specially-qualified contingent of GOHS H.E.A.T. Units.H.E.A.T. stands for Highway Enforcement of Aggressive Traffic. Last year, GOHS distributed $3.2-million in H.E.A.T. grants, funding nearly 100 traffic enforcement officers in 26 law enforcement agencies around the state to increase safety belt use and reduce speeding and impaired driving crashes. FOR MORE INFORMATION, VISIT THE ROLLING THUNDER SITE AT HTTP://WWW.GAHIGHWAYSAFETY.ORG/ROLLINGTHUNDER GOHS NEWS ITEMS GOHS HOME PAGE    First Page   Prev. Page   Next Page   Last Page

Categories: Announcements Announcements2 April 2004 Archive April 2005 Archive April 2006 Archive April 2007 August 2004 Archive August 2005 Archive August 2006 Archive August 2007 December 2004 Archive December 2005 Archive December 2006 Archive February 2004 Archive February 2005 Archive February 2006 Archive Februrary 2007 Archive January 2005 Archive January 2006 Archive January 2007 Archive July 006 Archive July 2004 Archive July 2005 Archive July 2007 June 2004 Archive June 2005 Archive June 2006 Archive June 2007 March 2004 Archive March 2005 Archive March 2006 Archive March 2007 Archive May 2004 Archive May 2005 Archive May 2006 Archive May 2007 November 2004 Archive November 2005 Archive November 2006 Archive November 2007 October 2004 Archive October 2005 Archive October 2006 Archive October 2007 September 2004 Archive September 2005 Archive September 2006 Archive September 2007