The Snyder Police Department recently completed an extra traffic enforcement project focusing on seatbelt safety and will be reimbursed through a grant from the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT).
The Selective Traffic Enforcement Program (STEP) grants from TxDOT reimburse law enforcement agencies for overtime due to extra traffic enforcement.
After a police officer is done with his or her normal shift, he would clock back in later for four hours of extra traffic enforcement.
Snyder police Cpl. Whitney Merket said those four hours focus solely on enforcing traffic.
“The officer who is on that shift does not handle any other types of calls or crimes during that time, just traffic,” Merket said.
TxDOT does STEP grant projects at specific times each year.
From May 23 to June 5, TxDOT offered a Click It or Ticket grant opportunity, focused on enforcing safety belt laws. To be eligible, a law enforcement agency had to only participate in four of the 14 days.
The Snyder Police Department participated 10 days, with two four-hour shifts each day — a total of 80 hours of overtime.
During those 80 hours, the department issued 230 traffic citations, a quarter of which were seatbelt-related.
Merket said the 230 citations was nearly double the goal the department had set.
Because of their work, the department was approved for a $5,000 grant to cover the overtime pay and any vehicle maintenance and mileage related to the overtime.
“My guys worked their butts off,” Merket said. “They stepped it up. It led to other types of arrests, not just seatbelt. We wrote citations for marijuana possession and other things like that through this.”
Merket said she was proud of the department and said it was stressful, but rewarding. She said she hopes the public realizes the importance of programs like this and understands why laws are in place.
“It’s not about getting numbers, it’s about safety,” Merket said.
Image
Body