SUMMER 2005: CLICK IT OR TICKET TEAMS UP WITH 100 DAYS OF SUMMER HEAT

100 Days of Summer HEAT 2005 begins Monday, May 23 along with a two week Click It or Ticket campaign (details). GOHS will kick off this year’s Campaign with a major news conference in Atlanta at Centennial Olympic Park on Monday, May 23 beginning at 10:30 AM. This year’s news conference should be spectacular. For those of you that attended last year’s kick off on the 17th Street Bridge remember that we had 155 marked Patrol Cars, 25 motorcycles and about 300 attendees. We are encouraging even more response this year. Speakers will include GOHS Director Bob Dallas, GSP Col. Bill Hitchens, Atlanta Police Chief Richard Pennington and NHTSA regional administrator Terry Schiavone. Speakers will also include morning radio personality, Steve Barnes of Atlanta’s 92.9 DAVE-FM, who is also a crash survivor (Listen to his story of survival here. MP3 format. 14 minutes).

• View the ESUVEE Safety Beast
• See the dangers of not wearing your safety belt via the Roll-Over Simulator
• Receive a special commemorative safety wrist band

Special acknowledgement will also be given to the law enforcement officers who appeared in the Summer HEAT TV Ads. The PSA’s for HEAT, Click it or Ticket and OZT have received national awards and have been nominated for three Emmys.

Law Enforcement Parking

For those of you that are not familiar with the lay out of Centennial Olympic Park, it is bordered on the east side by Centennial Olympic Park Drive and on the West by Marietta Street. International Blvd. goes through the middle of the park. International Blvd. in the Park will be closed to public traffic. We are asking that law enforcement begin arriving by 0930 and enter the Park on International from the Marietta Street entrance.

Atlanta PD will assist with Law Enforcement Parking. We will park as many patrol cars on International in the Park as possible. The vehicles will be parked at an angle similar to the way we did it on the 17th Street Bridge last year. Parking on International is limited, so come early to secure one of these slots. There will be a designated area on International for Motorcycles. Motorcycles should enter from Marietta Street as well. Once the space on International is filled up, we will begin parking patrol cars on the outside lane of Centennial Olympic Park Dr., encircling the perimeter of the Park.

This should be quite a sight for downtown Atlanta. APD will also be shooting aerial photos.

Victims Invited

Director Dallas has extended an invitation to the news conference to citizens that either lost someone last year as a result of a vehicle crash or those that were seriously injured. GOHS has posted this invitation in news papers around the state. If you know someone that fits the above criteria, please invite them to attend.

Last year 100 Days of Summer HEAT enforcement produced almost 650,000 arrests and citations. Almost 225,000 of those were speeding citations, over 61,000 Seat Belt Citations, and almost 16,000 DUI’s were arrested. There were over 18,000 uninsured motorists and over 17,000 persons with revoked or suspended driver’s license arrested. Additionally, almost 7500 individuals were arrested for Drug violations, almost 6000 other felonies, and over 6100 fugitives were apprehended.

All your efforts resulted in Georgia attaining a seat belt usage rate of 86.7%, the highest in the Southeast, and reducing the number of speed related fatalities over the summer compared with 2003. Overall fatalities during the summer were reduced by 14%. With your dedication and persistence, Holiday Fatalities during the summer were well under the predictions.

GOHS expects Click It or Ticket/100 Days of Summer HEAT 2005 to produce even greater enforcement numbers as well as a greater reduction in fatalities over the course of the summer.

CHECK BACK SHORTLY FOR MORE PICTURES AND NEWS FROM CLICK IT OR TICKET

Operation Click It or Ticket is a high visibility seat belt and child restraint enforcement program to increase belt use and save lives. Law enforcement officers across the state will be conducting concentrated patrols and checkpoints throughout the two-week campaign.

“There is no more cost effective way to reduce injuries and deaths on Georgia highways than buckling up. It's free ”--- GOHS Director Bob Dallas .

For more information regarding Operation Click It or Ticket, contact Ricky Rich at GOHS either via email at rrich@gohs.state.ga.us or by phone at 404-656-6996.

LISTEN TO THE LATEST RADIO ADS FOR OPERATION CLICK IT OR TICKET. CLICK HERE FOR THE .15 SECOND AD AND HERE FOR THE .30 SECOND AD. BOTH ADS ARE IN MP3 FORMAT.