Columbus Police using more detailed information in third distracted driving sting

The blue lights from the Columbus Police Motor Squad lit up Victory Drive Wednesday morning as the department conducted its third sting operation since June, targeting distracted drivers.

A police detail worked between North Lumpkin Road and South Lumpkin Road from about 7 a.m. to 9:30 a.m., writing tickets mostly for distracted driving, running red lights and not wearing a seat belt, said Lt. Clyde Dent.

“When we started this morning, there were blue lights everywhere,” Dent said about 9 a..m. “And it has been pretty steady all morning.”

There were at least three plain clothes officers near the intersection watching for violations of state law concerning distracted driving. In Georgia, it is not illegal to talk on a cell phone, but it is against the law to text and drive as well as manipulate the phone to check social media accounts or send and check emails. That law applies when a motorist is stopped at a red light, Dent said.

“We are not just getting folks who pick up the phone and swipe it one time,” said Sgt. Fred Carnes. “And we are getting people who go through a red light two seconds or more after it changed.”

Most of the traffic stops were happening in the Victory Drive emergency lanes between North Lumpkin Road and South Lumpkin Road. Victory Drive is a critical link from parts of Columbus and east Alabama to Fort Benning, the largest employer in the region.

“We just wanted to do another part of town,” Dent said of the reason for targeting Victory Drive.

On June 1, officers, using similar police tactics, issued 96 tickets along Bradley Park Drive. On Aug. 15, police wrote 80 citations along Macon Road near the Columbus Public Library.

Police issued 102 citations during the operation, Dent said. Of that 29 were for distracted driving, Dent said. The others were for running red lights, seat belt violations and traffic stop related insurance and driver’s license violations, Dent said.

Police have refined their tactics since the original operation in June.

“The information from the spotters now is much more detailed to include which hand they were using, how long they were doing it and other information,” Dent said.

The purpose of the stings is to raise public awareness of the dangers of distracted driving, Dent said Wednesday morning as he supervised the operation that stretched along about a mile of Victory Drive.

“We had a guy come out this morning and ask if this was one of those distracted driving operations,” Dent said. “So, people are more aware of it, but they are still doing it. We see it every day.”

A conviction for distracted driving in Columbus Recorder’s Court carries a fine and court costs of $200.63.

Wednesday’s operation came the same week that most of the cases made on Aug. 15 had cleared Recorder’s Court.

This story was originally published October 18, 2017 at 10:33 AM with the headline "Columbus Police using more detailed information in third distracted driving sting."