COLLINSVILLE – Illinois State Police (ISP) District 11 Commander, Captain Mark Doiron, announces that the ISP will conduct Occupant Restraint Enforcement Patrols (OREP), Roadside Safety Checks (R.S.C) and Alcohol Countermeasure Enforcement (ACE) patrols, Distracted Driving Enforcement Program patrols, and Nighttime Enforcement (NITE) Patrols in St. Clair or Madison County during the month of September.
Occupant Restraint Enforcement Patrols
OREP allows the ISP to target an area with saturation patrols that focus on traffic violations and related compliance with safety belt and child safety seat laws. Safety belt enforcement zones will also be set up to ensure the driver and passengers are buckled up. Beginning February 1, 2012, Illinois law requires all vehicle passengers (front and back) to be buckled up!
Safety belts are one of the most effective safety devices in vehicles today, estimated to save over 16,000 lives each year. Over half of vehicle occupants killed in a traffic crash were not properly buckled up.
The objective of the OREP program is to increase compliance with occupant restraint laws through education, child seat inspections, and enforcement. Greater awareness, acceptance, and use of occupant protection equipment will save many lives.
This project is funded through the Illinois Department of Transportation, Division of Traffic Safety.
Roadside Safety Checks and Alcohol Countermeasure Enforcement (ACE) patrols
A roadside safety check is an effective tool for generating voluntary compliance by the motoring public. The potential to come across these checks encourages motorists to arrange designated drivers, keep their consumption of alcohol within the allowable limits, or not drive a motor vehicle after drinking. Safety checks are designed to keep our roads safe by taking dangerous DUI offenders off the road.
The ACE patrols allow the ISP to target an area with saturation patrols that focus on preventing, detecting, and taking enforcement action in response to violations associated with impaired driving and illegal transportation or consumption of alcohol and other drugs.
Across the country, an average of one alcohol-related traffic death occurs every 45 minutes. Alcohol and drug impairment are significant factors in over 40 percent of all fatal motor vehicle crashes in Illinois. Each year in Illinois, hundreds of lives are lost in alcohol-related crashes. Don’t risk losing your license, your car, and your freedom. If you drive impaired, law enforcement will arrest you.
Officers working the R.S.C. will also be watchful for drivers who are operating vehicles in an unsafe manner, driving with a suspended or revoked driver’s license, and transporting open alcoholic beverages.
This Roadside Safety Check is funded through a grant from the United States Department of Transportation, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. The grant is administered by the Illinois Department of Transportation, Division of Traffic Safety.
Distracted Driving Enforcement Program patrols
This program allows ISP to focus on distracted driving laws to prevent traffic deaths and serious injury crashes.
Distractions can increase a driver’s risk of being in an accident:
- Eating or drinking (non-alcoholic beverages) increases the risk by three times.
- Sending a text message increases the risk by four times.
- Reaching for an object increases the risk by eight times.
- Reading a text message can take a driver’s eyes off the road for an average of five seconds.
Officers will be on the lookout for drivers who disobey Illinois’ distracted driving laws, especially the following:
- All drivers are prohibited from reading, sending, or receiving text messages or communication, and from browsing the internet.
- All drivers are prohibited from using handheld electronic communication devices.
- Drivers under the age of 19 are prohibited from using any cellphone, even hands-free.
- All drivers are prohibited from using any cellphone, even hands-free, while in school speed zones and work zones.
- School bus drivers are not permitted to use any type of cellphone, even hands-free.
- It is illegal to use a cellphone or take photos or videos on wireless devices when driving within 500 feet of an emergency scene.
This distracted driving enforcement campaign is made possible by traffic safety funds administered by the Illinois Department of Transportation.
Nighttime Enforcement (NITE) Patrols
Officers working NITE patrols will be watchful for drivers who are operating vehicles in an unsafe manner, driving with a suspended or revoked driver’s license, transporting open alcoholic beverages, not properly buckled up, and driving under the influence.
Alcohol and drug impairment is a significant factor in nearly 40 percent of all fatal motor vehicle crashes in Illinois. The ISP has zero-tolerance for impaired drivers. If you drive drunk, you will be arrested.
These nighttime patrols are designed to keep our roads safe by taking dangerous DUI offenders off the road and ensuring all vehicle occupants are buckled up.
This project is funded by the Illinois Department of Transportation, Division of Traffic Safety.
