Getting Rid of Aggressive Drivers

The hot-weather traffic is upon us. Roads to the beaches are clogged. Students not in class or at summer jobs are on the freeways. The heat drives tempers up with the thermometer.

It’s fitting that the California Highway Patrol has picked this month to launch a crackdown on dangerous drivers on the roads in the state, following up on a program that began in Orange County.

The CHP’s San Juan Capistrano office patrols the roads from Lake Forest to San Clemente. It issues more speeding tickets than any other office in the state.

Last December, the office began targeting aggressive drivers. That’s welcome news to most drivers on the road, who may be inattentive at times but who don’t spend most of their commuting time tailgating, switching lanes without a signal or warning and flashing their high beams on and off.

The South County program began after the annual fatality rate on those roads went from nine to 19. The CHP said its officers understood they had to get back to automotive patrol, rather than clearing roads of tire treads or responding to accidents and breakdowns.

When officers concentrated on finding and stopping motorists whose driving patterns were considered most likely to result in accidents, they were able to issue more than 10 tickets in a four-hour shift. The ticket-dispensing ratio was twice that of a police officer on normal patrol.

The campaign against freeway warriors was expanded to the CHP sectors in Santa Ana and Westminster earlier this year. After the state Office of Traffic Safety came through with a grant, the statewide program began this month.

The grant will pay for officers to concentrate on finding and ticketing aggressive drivers, as well as for a public-education program and billboards urging patience by those behind the wheel.

The CHP is marking its 70th birthday. Clearly each year brings more work because each year puts more cars on the freeways. A new challenge in Orange County is the toll roads, where some drivers clock speeds of 100 miles per hour.

Hitting speed demons in the pocketbook may deter them and other drivers who see the tickets being written. It certainly will stop the dangerous behavior at least temporarily.