By MATT PIKE
St. Joseph Post
Warmer weather means increased traffic along St. Joseph's Belt Highway, and increased traffic means a higher number of crashes.
Interim St. Joseph Police Chief Dave Hart says with the warmer weather things are beginning to shift from talking about slick road conditions, to talking about more drivers hitting the roads.
Hart says many crashes along the Belt Highway come down to inattention.
"You'll see it when you're driving around and somebody's at a stoplight and their head is down," Hart tells KFEQ Hotline host Barry Birr. "They're looking at their phone, they're messing with their (radio), and then they're surprised when the light turns green or someone has to gently remind them that the light has turned green."
Hart says he's aware that cell phones and newer technology in cars make it easy to look away from the road but urges drivers to pay closer attention to the traffic.
Hart says traffic crashes at red lights are still as prevalent as ever with people not paying attention and running them.
"They're not like oh I got surprised by this thing I didn't know was going to happen, it's people not focusing on what they're doing," Hart explains. "You've got kids, you've got work, you've got the 9,000 things that we have pulling us in different directions, but if you lose that focus for even a second, things can go horribly and terribly wrong, and that's the last thing that we want for our community."
Hart advises defensive driving and to be on the lookout for cars that might be in the intersection too early.
While warmer weather means more people will be out driving along the Belt Highway, drivers will also see more motorcyclists out and about.
Hart says while there are many safe motorcycle drivers, St. Joseph also sees a certain group of motorcyclists.
"Causes problems, does silly tricks, that stuff has no business in a city, it has no business in our community, and we have zero tolerance for it," Hart says.
Hart says those people are not only putting themselves in danger, but also members of the community
"There's enough memorials up and down the Belt Highway of people who were killed in these accidents," Hart says. "Go find somewhere else to ride like a moron, because we don't want it here in St. Joe."
Hart says in years past the police department has done projects tackling these drivers and plan to do them again.