Deputies, Police on Heightened Alert for St. Patrick’s Day
Local law enforcement out in force during St. Patrick’s Day traffic safety mobilization
For the City Times
In an effort to combat drunken driving and increase safety belt usage, Stevens Point and Plover Police departments, along with the Portage County Sheriff’s Office, will be on the road in higher numbers over the next week.
Drivers can expect to see heightened law enforcement presence over the St. Patrick’s Day holiday- typically one of the busiest nights of the year for bars and taverns- and through March 22.
According to a news release from the Sheriff’s Office, the increased effort is part of a grant awarded by the Wisconsin Department of Transportation Bureau of Transportation Safety.
“During the St. Patrick’s Day mobilization and throughout the year we are striving to prevent motorists from killing and injuring themselves and others on the roadways,” the news release reads. “The aim of the enforcement is voluntary compliance with traffic laws, better driving behaviors and better choices about occupant safety- not to write more tickets and make more arrests….The overall goal of this effort is to reduce preventable traffic deaths because even one preventable traffic death is one too many.”
The statement goes on to urge drivers who have had too much to drink to call a cab. Plover Taxi is available at (715) 342-1313, and Courtesy Cab can be reached at (715) 342-8863.