Are You a Smooth Operator?

Upper Southampton Police are reminding travelers to keep their distance from aggressive drivers.

The department is in the midst of an aggressive driving enforcement campaign.

The enforcement effort, known as the Smooth Operator campaign, will be conducted through March 27.

“Basically we will have two officers who are out on patrol specifically for aggressive drivers,” said Lt. Frank Groome of the Upper Southampton Police Department.

Groome said while it’s not a huge problem within the township, the department does field at least a few calls a week regarding aggressive driving.

The Smooth Operator initiave is funded through a state grant and over 300 municipal police departments and the Pennsylvania State Police are participating in the effort.

According to the smooth operator website, police will be keeping an eye out for speeding, tailgating and other aggressive driving behaviors. Any aggressive driver stopped by police will receive a ticket.

Last year, participating departments wrote 154,642 aggressive-driving related citations, including 73,108 for speeding. Disobedience of traffic control devices/signs was the second most-common offense, resulting in 36,136 citations.

The extra traffic enforcement also brought about 171 felony arrests, 1,683 DUI arrests and 553 drug-related arrests statewide.

The Smooth Operator aggressive driving enforcement is a part of the Pennsylvania Aggressive Driving Enforcement and Education Project and is funded by the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA).

Want to know if you are considered a “safe driver?’ To take PennDOT’s safe drive quiz, or to read more fact about safe driving, visit DriveSafePa.org.