MEDIA ADVISORY
For Immediate Release
CONTACT:
Robert Hydrick
Communications Director, GOHS Georgia
404.651.8503 (o) | 404.859.0141 (c)
GEORGIA, TENNESSEE KICK OFF 'OPERATION SOUTHERN SLOW DOWN' MONDAY IN RINGGOLD
State and local law enforcement in five states target speeding and aggressive driving during week-long enforcement and awareness campaign
WHO: Georgia Governor's Office of Highway Safety
Tennessee Highway Safety Office
Georgia State Patrol
Alabama Highway Patrol
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
WHEN: Monday, July 15, 2024
10:00 a.m.
WHERE: Georgia Welcome Center
2726 Interstate 75 South
Ringgold, GA. 30736
WHAT: Georgia and Tennessee join Alabama, Florida and South Carolina for the eighth annual "Operation Southern Slow Down" speed enforcement and education campaign July 15-21. The campaign kicks off Monday with five simultaneous news conferences with the five states and then moves to enforcement on interstate and major highways for the rest of the week. Representatives from the Governor's Office of Highway Safety (GOHS), Tennessee Highway Safety Office (THSO) and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) will discuss the dangers of speeding and how crash data shows faster speeds lead to more crashes on our roads. Troopers with the Georgia State Patrol and Tennessee Highway Patrol will discuss the role speed plays in the crashes they investigate and enforcement efforts during the week and offer driving safety tips.
WHY: According to NHTSA, 11,423 passenger vehicle occupants were killed in speeding-related crashes in the United States in 2022, which is a 25 percent increase from 2018. Speeding was a factor in one-third of traffic fatalities in the United States in 2022. NHTSA's Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS) data shows that the number of speeding-related fatality crashes in the five NHTSA Region 4 states increased by 14 percent over a five-year period for 2018-2022. According to FARS crash data, 1,610 passenger vehicle occupants died in speeding-related crashes in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, South Carolina and Tennessee in 2022 compared to 1,410 passenger vehicle occupants killed in speeding-related crashes in the five southeastern states in 2018. While most people believe speeding is only a problem on the interstate, federal crash data is showing an increase in speed related fatality crashes on non-interstate roads. According to FARS data, 91 percent of speed-related crashes in the five southeastern states in 2022 occurred on non-interstate highways compared to 2018 when 88 percent of speed-related crashes in the five southeastern states occurred on non-interstate highways.