TWIN FALLS — Starting July 23 and running through until August 8, the Twin Falls Police Department will be teaming up with 50 other local law enforcement agencies throughout the state and the Idaho Transportation Department to stop aggressive drivers.
“Speeding, racing, failure to use a turn signal while making lane changes, following to close," said Sgt. Lou Coronado for the Twin Falls Police Department. "Those types of violations go hand in hand with aggressive driving.”
Some of the other things the police department is warning drivers of doing are ignoring traffic signals, weaving in and out of traffic, passing on the shoulder, screaming or honking out of frustration, and making rude hand and facial gestures.
Typically, traffic tends to ramp up in Twin Falls during the Spring and Summer months due to people driving here for work, or to enjoy the day at popular attractions and the police have already seen people committing these sorts of violations.
“We’re probably a population of 53,000, but during the day, we swell to maybe 100,000," said Coronado. "Those roads are just so congested out there, so we do see some aggressive driving out there. Just people not wanting to slow down and I guess impatient.”
From October 2020 to July of this year, the Twin Falls Police Department has reported 294 accidents related to aggressive driving behavior. Of those, 131 of the accidents were attributed to people following another car too closely, 31 for improper lane changes, 62 for failing to stop at a stop sign, 52 for failure to yield at a left turn, 7 for speeding, and 11 for failure to yield for a traffic controlled device.
To try and limit more accidents occurring from aggressive behavior, the department is taking preventative measures to limit the number of traffic violations.
“We’re offering that overtime for the officers who come in on their days off and go out there and try to stop people from driving aggressively," said Coronado. "Whether they’re speeding, following too close, racing, whatever the case may be. Not necessarily have to cite everybody but just make contact and educate these people.”
Although the department is taking measures to reduce the possibility of accidents, they also encourage drivers to do the same.
“Be courteous of other drivers," said Coronado. "Try to slow down and allow more time to get to your destinations.”
