Thursday, October 16, 2008

Alpharetta Residents Take Speed Crackdown Into Own Hands


Posted By: Bekki Kanter / 11alive.com

Alpharetta, GA -- Have you ever seen a driver speeding through your neighborhood and wished you could do something about it?

Now, residents in Alpharetta are doing something about it, by taking a speeding crackdown into their own hands, literally.

A new community speed-monitoring program will allow Alpharetta residents to take an active role in addressing speed related concerns in their neighborhoods by giving them radar guns.

The Alpharetta Department of Public Safety launched the "Community Speed Monitoring Program" this week.

Residents are required to work in groups of three, with one resident identifying speeding vehicles, another to record data, such as date, time and speed, and another to verify tag numbers.

The information will be relayed to the director of the Public Safety Department or his designee, who will determine what action should be taken.

"This is another tool for homeowners to use in helping with the safety of the neighborhood," said Police Officer Terry Joyner. "It will give them the opportunity to personally be able to get an accurate account of the speeding problems that may are not be going on in their community. This information will also assist us in determining if further enforcement is needed."

Members of the Thornberry neighborhood safety committee were introduced to the radar guns recently and responded favorably to the new tool. "I think it will bring awareness to those actually speeding through the neighborhood," said resident Sherrie Board. "Some people don't realize their speed or the danger."

Those who have been properly trained on the use of the radar guns will be permitted to sign out the guns for three days.

Interested residents should contact their PACT officer, who will handle the distribution of the guns. Those neighborhoods not involved with PACT, should contact the Community Relations Unit at 678-297-6309.

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