Newport police to boost motorcycle safety effort Thursday

July 26, 2016 5:56 PM PT

Newport Beach police will have an extra officer on the streets Thursday to help focus on safety for motorcyclists.

The effort is part of a grant-funded program intended to reduce injuries related to motorcycle crashes.

Police departments throughout the state are running similar operations using money provided by the California Office of Traffic and Safety and distributed through the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

On Thursday, Newport patrol officers will spend time in areas where motorcyclists often ride or where there have been collisions recently, police said in a news release.

“Education and enforcement will be targeted at [car and truck] drivers and motorcycle riders alike,” police said.

They’ll be looking for violations such as driving under the influence or other dangerous driving and driving without a valid license.

Last year in Newport Beach, 35 people were hurt and one person was killed in collisions involving motorcycles, police said.

Jeremiah Dobruck, jeremiah.dobruck2@latimes.com

Twitter: @jeremiahdobruck

Jeremiah Dobruck

Jeremiah Dobruck was a public safety reporter for the Daily Pilot. He first came to the Pilot as an editorial intern in 2009. After a handful of other media-related jobs, he was hired full-time at the Pilot as a copy editor in 2012. He holds a bachelor’s in journalism from Cal State Fullerton. He left the Daily Pilot in 2016.