Law enforcement agencies teaming up for concentrated effort to “purge dangerous drivers” in El Paso County
EL PASO COUNTY, Colo. (KRDO) -- Law enforcement agencies in El Paso County are teaming up for a concentrated, 24-hour effort to remove dangerous drivers from the greater Colorado Springs area.
According to the Colorado Department of Transportation (CDOT), beginning at 5 a.m. on Friday, March 10, the Colorado State Patrol, Colorado Springs Police Department, El Paso County Sheriff's Office, Fountain Police Department, and Monument Police Department will be heavily patrolling specific areas of I-25 for speeding, distracted, aggressive, and impaired drivers.
According to CDOT, the "Surge Enforcement Team," which is made up of the aforementioned agencies, was created in response to an increase in speeding and risky driving behaviors in El Paso County. CDOT says their data shows that El Paso County had the highest amount of speeding citations in all of Colorado over the past three years and was also among the counties with the highest number of impaired-driving fatalities in 2022.
Additional data shows that in 2022, 28% of all roadway fatalities in El Paso County involved speeding. Between 2021 and 2022, the county also saw a 57% increase in speeding-related fatalities, according to CDOT.
"Something is going on in El Paso County. We’re seeing a lot more speeding, a lot more aggressive drivers, and a lot more high-risk driving in general,” said Lt. Christopher Gonzalez of the El Paso County Sheriff’s Office. “We want to not only remove these drivers from the road but also raise awareness to hopefully shift these trends and prevent more fatalities in our community.”
CDOT says this upcoming enforcement period will be the first of four high-intensity surge enforcement periods in El Paso County this year. The March 10 patrols will focus on I-25 between mile points 116 and 163, from approximately Wigwam to Monument. The next Surge enforcement will occur in June.
