Slow down or expect to get a speeding ticket – that is the message from state and local law enforcement officers in five southeastern states where “Operation Southern Slow Down” starts today.
This is the eighth year of the week-long speed awareness and enforcement campaign that runs from July 15 through July 21 in Georgia, Alabama, Florida, South Carolina, and Tennessee.
The campaign kicks off today with law enforcement officers conducting concentrated enforcement on interstates and major highways.
According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), over 12,000 people were killed in crashes involving speeding in the United States last year, which was a 28 percent increase from just 3 years prior. Speeding was a factor in 28 percent of the total fatal crashes in the U.S.
The number of passenger vehicle occupants killed in speed-related crashes in Georgia has increased by 56 percent over the past five-year period – from 262 in 2019 to 409 in 2023. Speed was a factor in almost 30 percent of the crashes that killed passenger vehicle occupants in Georgia last year compared to 20 percent of those crashes in 2019.
“You’re almost three times more likely to be involved in a fatal or serious-injury crash when you’re speeding,” said Allen Poole, Director of the Georgia Governor’s Office of Highway Safety. “Speeding lowers your reaction time, increases the risk of losing control of your vehicle, and reduces the effectiveness of occupant protection equipment.”
In observance of “Operation Slow Down,” the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is offering the following speed-related safety reminders:
- The distance to stop a vehicle quadruples every time that a driver doubles their speed.
- On multi-lane roads, stay out of the far-left lane unless passing another vehicle.
- Children usually drive in the manner they see adults. Set a good example by driving the speed limit.
“Operation Southern Slow Down” began in 2017 and runs concurrent with the NHTSA “Speeding Slows You Down” national awareness and enforcement campaign that started last week and runs through the end of this month.