Leesburg Police Department to Kick-off Safe Streets Initiative

Education and Enforcement campaign to start during the first week of school

The Leesburg Police Department will be kicking off a new traffic safety program to coincide with the start of the new 2013-2014 school year. The Safe Streets Initiative will encompass both an educational and an enforcement campaign with a goal of making the streets in Leesburg safer for motorists and pedestrians.

The educational phase of the initiative will involve a singular focused message that the Town of Leesburg is a safe driving community and that a central focus of the entire Leesburg government is the safe and efficient flow of traffic throughout our community.

On August 13, the Leesburg Town Council passed a resolution calling on all motorists and pedestrians to join the Town Council and the Town of Leesburg Government in making safety a priority in our community. Throughout the year, press releases will be sent stressing various safety messages. In addition, message boards will be deployed in areas of high traffic volume in order to reaffirm the Town’s commitment to traffic and pedestrian safety and provide educational and driver safety tips.

The enforcement phase of the initiative will kick off during the week of September 3. Leesburg Police officers, with the assistance of the Virginia State Police will be out in force in and around schools during the first week conducting a “Traffic Safety Blitz”.

The goal of this “Blitz” is to reduce the number of traffic crashes occurring both in and around schools as well as Town wide. High visibility patrols will be utilized conducting traffic enforcement operations. Specific emphasis will be placed on speeding, aggressive driving, distracted driving, stop light/sign violations, occupant protection, and pedestrian violations.

During the remainder of the year, the department will target “hotspot” areas based on statistical analysis with a goal of achieving a reduction in both personal injury and property damage crashes.

   For the latest Loudoun County traffic news and information, subscribe to Loudoun County Traffic via your favorite RSS reader, or get Loudoun County Traffic by e-mail.