Gov. Easley Announces Enforcement Efforts Result in 42,275 Charges:

Raleigh - Gov. Mike Easley announced today that state and local law enforcement agencies wrote 17,512 speeding citations last week during the combined Operation Slow Down/No Need 2 Speed highway safety campaign. The N.C. Highway Patrol wrote 12,258 speeding tickets and 13,862 citations for other violations during Operation Slow Down. Local law enforcement agencies participating in the Governor's Highway Safety Program's No Need 2 Speed campaign cited 5,254 motorists for speeding and issued 10,901 citations for other violations.

"Combining the efforts of state and local law enforcement agencies reminds the public that speeding and irresponsible driving are the leading causes of traffic deaths and collisions in our state," said Easley. "This campaign no doubt has convinced some people to be safer drivers, and that saves lives."

Last week's campaign was the first time that the Highway Patrol's Operation Slow Down and the Governor's Highway Safety Program's No Need 2 Speed campaign have been conducted during the same week. Both enforcement efforts are aimed at convincing people to slow down and obey the speed limits.

Operation Slow Down is conducted several times a year. The Highway Patrol began the campaign two years ago in an effort to reduce traffic collisions across the state on interstates and major four-lane highways. During 2006 Slow Down campaigns, troopers issued more than 80,000 traffic citations, the majority for speeding. More importantly, speed related collisions dropped 10 percent from the previous year.

The Governor's Highway Safety Program kicked off a pilot No Need 2 Speed campaign in June 2006 that focused on roads with a history of speed-related crashes in Robeson, Cumberland, Harnett and Johnston counties. A N.C. Department of Transportation study conducted after the campaign showed that the increased enforcement was successful in reducing speeds on the rural roads that were targeted as part of the project.

Dangerous driving can be reported to the Highway Patrol by dialing *HP on cellular phones from anywhere in the state. For more information about Operation Slow Down 2007, visit the N.C. Department of Crime Control and Public Safety's web site at www.nccrimecontrol.org/shp. For more information on No Need 2 Speed, go to the Governor's Highway Safety Program website at www.ncdot.org/programs/GHSP/initiatives/nn2s.html.