The Garden City Police Department received the 2010 Georgia Governor’s Challenge Award for reducing commercial vehicle accidents. According to Garden City police, commercial vehicle accidents have gone down by 40% since they launched their Commercial Vehicle Traffic Unit, in 2008. The Governor’s Challenge Award was created to encouraged highway safety enforcement and education.
Garden City PD recognized thattrucking accidentsand trucking safety had become a growing problem in the area as commercial traffic increased with the growth and development of the Georgia Ports Authority. Officers who observed what appeared to be safety violations did not have the authority to take action. They needed special training and certification to inspect the trucks and enforce safety regulations.
Garden city police officers in the Commercial Vehicle Traffic Unit receive special training so that they know how to properly inspect trucks and have an understanding of complex trucking laws such as Hours of Service (HOS) regulations. Now they have to knowledge and the authority to enforce these laws and get dangerous trucks that are in violation off the road.
The program seems to be working. In 2008, there were 212 commercial vehicle accidents in Garden City. In 2009, that number was down to 127.
If you or a loved one has been injured or killed in a trucking accident, please contact ustoday. Your initial consultation is free, and we work on a contingency fee basis so you don’t pay unless you get paid.
