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February 29, 2008

All in a day's work

46 citations issued during ‘Operation Safe Driver’ blitz

By Brad Hicks / Staff Writer

Kentucky Vehicle Enforcement Officer Charles Garland drove casually up Interstate 75 North as he patiently surveyed the passing vehicles and monitored the speeds registering on his radar. This quaint drive took a sudden turn, as Garland quickly tore his cruiser through the snow-blanketed median to get to a speeding fuel truck.

“That’s the nature of the beast,” he said. “It can go from complete boredom to chaos in a matter of seconds.”

Garland, who has worked for the KVE for four years, has pulled over countless vehicles and doled out numerous citations. In the process, he is ensuring safe conditions for the millions of motorists who travel Kentucky’s interstate roads daily.

“The primary emphasis of the KVE is highway safety,” he said.

A Barbourville native, Garland said ever-changing shifts are part of the job, which keep him away from home and his wife, Cindy more than he would like. But it’s worth the price.

“I guess it’s self-gratifying satisfaction knowing you make a difference,” he said.

Come snow or shine, the officers of the KVE were out in force Wednesday to make that difference. KVE offices across the commonwealth, in conjunction with the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration and the Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance, held their “Operation Safe Driver” program, which is intended to inform the public about safer driving practices while enforcing state and federal laws.

“Today is a publicized day, but it’s a regular day for us,” said KVE Officer Greg Reams. “We’re trying to educate the public, through publications and the media, about safe driving around commercial vehicles. This joint effort is to educate the public as much as it is about enforcement.”

While the members of the media who were invited to ride along with them are likely not accustomed to high-speed rundowns of traffic violators, it is all in a day’s work for the KVE officers who patrol Kentucky’s highways.

“This is not just a one day enforcement blitz,” Reams said. “We continually do this throughout the year. This is a standard work day for us.”

KVE’s emphasis is on commercial vehicles, but is hardly exclusive to them. Passenger vehicles violating traffic laws are watched just as closely.

Garland said common passenger vehicle violations include speeding, drivers operating under the influence and motorists not wearing seat belts. Typical commercial vehicle violations include log book reporting violations, suspended licenses and speeding. They will also be watching for passenger vehicles following too closely and cutting to quickly in front of commercial vehicles. KVE officers must watch for other things, however, such as fatigued drivers.

“In my opinion, a fatigued driver is just as bad as an impaired driver,” Garland said.

The state is divided into 10 regions, with at least one KVE station within each region. Reams estimates that around 4,000 trucks each day pass through this region’s two weigh stations. Trucks are mandated to stop at these stations if they are registered as hauling 10,000 pounds or more.

“We see quite a bit of traffic,” Reams said.

And while the KVE enforces the codes of the road and inspects commercial vehicles to make sure they’re up to speed, Reams summed up the mission of the agency simply.

“We’re trying to cut down on the hazards with interstate travel,” he said.

Post 7 of the KVE, which is located in Laurel County, inspected 270 commercial trucks and issued 46 citations Wednesday while covering predominantly the Whitely, Laurel and Rockcastle county areas along Interstate 75.



Brad Hicks can be reached at bhicks@the

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