Johnson County Sheriff’s officers and other agencies have started extra patrols monitoring aggressive driving on major highways, including Kansas Highway 10.
Master Deputy Tom Erickson said that on Wednesday deputies began looking for drivers engaged in offenses that can be dangerous to others, such as speeding, excessive lane changes, improper passing and tailgating.
He said that aggressive driving is inherently dangerous, especially on heavily traveled roads, and that it can lead to road rage and other physical altercations.
Officers will also strictly enforce drunken driving, and seat belt and helmet laws, Erickson said.
A state grant is providing funding for overtime to have extra officers on special patrols in the next week.
K-10 is a major commuter highway between Lawrence and suburban Kansas City.
Comments
riverdrifter 10 months, 1 week ago
Good idea. No warnings, stiff fines.
Phoghorn 10 months, 1 week ago
But Officer, the commercial said my car could do that...
bigdave 10 months, 1 week ago
What helmet laws?
JackMcKee 10 months, 1 week ago
my thought too
OonlyBonly 10 months, 1 week ago
Under 18 must wear a helmet. Over 18 optional. All must wear protective eyewear - not just glasses, actual shatterproof lenses. This is the one most ignored especially in Lawrence.
Topple 10 months, 1 week ago
Do motorcycle passengers have to wear glasses?
consumer1 10 months, 1 week ago
Unless you have a windshield that is 21 " then glasses are not required, but should wear them anyway. so should passenger. One bug in the eye is all it takes.
gphawk89 10 months, 1 week ago
"One bug in the eye is all it takes" "not just glasses, actual shatterproof lenses" No kidding. I had a lens knocked out of regular sunglasses by a cicada once on the highway. Hurt like the dickens but I somehow got the bike stopped.
In MO, helmets are required but eye protection is not. Go figure...
WereAllMonkeys 10 months, 1 week ago
I hope they go after the passive-aggresive drivers that park themselves in the passing lane too.
A helmet is required by law to ride a motorcycle in Kansas for riders under age 18.
3up3down 10 months, 1 week ago
Exactly. It is called impeding the flow of traffic. Time for them to get off their cell phones and move their slow boats over.
cheeseburger 10 months, 1 week ago
+1
hear_me 10 months, 1 week ago
The left lane is for passing only. If your "parked car" is passing a vehicle in the right lane, it has every right to be in the left lane.
By the way, the passing lane is not for cars going over the speed limit. Good luck with those patrols.
patkindle 10 months, 1 week ago
i hope they dont arrest them they just shoot thier tires out
JustNoticed 10 months, 1 week ago
Double Plus Good
rockchalker52 10 months, 1 week ago
Tailgaters! Fine the tailgaters! Horrible, dim-witted people.
Crazy_Larry 10 months, 1 week ago
GTFO of the passing lane! July 2, 2009 - New law: Left lane only for passing
rockchalker52 10 months, 1 week ago
I'm not in the passing lane. That ain't the only tailgatin' hotspot. You see, you tailgate AND assume too much. That's a bad combination.
Slowpokes on the left suck, too, though.
Crazy_Larry 10 months, 1 week ago
I do not tailgate, although I do drive aggressive sometimes. For instance, here's Ken Block imitating me heading home from work on Fridays. Good luck tryin' to catch me, coppers!
DC SHOES: KEN BLOCK'S GYMKHANA FIVE: ULTIMATE URBAN PLAYGROUND; SAN FRANCISCO by DCshoesFILM
ksjayhawk74 10 months, 1 week ago
Tailgaters are the worst.
When the person behind me is so close that I can't see the front grill of their car in my rear view mirror, that is a problem.
ksjayhawk74 10 months, 1 week ago
This happens when I'm driving in Lawrence, going to speed limit.
hear_me 10 months, 1 week ago
The driver does not have to accommodate the speed of the vehicle behind them when they are passing.
lionbacker 10 months, 1 week ago
then get out of the passing lane
ksjayhawk74 10 months, 1 week ago
This happens when I'm driving around Lawrence. If you tailgate, you can cause and accident that will be your fault.
hear_me 10 months, 1 week ago
Protocol will not hold up in traffic court.
hipper_than_hip 10 months, 1 week ago
I have more of an issue with people who act as if they're the only one on the road. Cruising in the left lane and tailgating are both very selfish.
Pork_Ribs 10 months, 1 week ago
If you're cruising in the left lane...you should be tailgated. In most cases one causes the other. Like doing 55 on the bypass. I'll be all over your arse :)
Crazy_Larry 10 months, 1 week ago
July 2, 2009 - New law: Left lane only for passing
ksjayhawk74 10 months, 1 week ago
No matter how slow someone is going, you shouldn't "be all over their arse". That will cause on accident that is your fault.
Benthic 10 months, 1 week ago
"I'll be all over your arse" Who are you to teach people a lesson on the road? You are the type I hope gets pulled over.
just_another_bozo_on_this_bus 10 months, 1 week ago
There is never any excuse for tailgating. It's dangerous and idiotic at any time, and puts at risk not just you and the car you're tailgating, but any cars that might be near you if you cause an accident.
Also, the speed limit is still the speed limit, and the passing lane is still the passing lane. As long as the car in the passing lane is in the act of passing, they have every right to be there. Just because they're only going 72 mph, and you want to go 80 mph, doesn't give you sole right to the lane, or the right to tailgate (which is always a stupid move.)
hipper_than_hip 10 months, 1 week ago
If you jump out into the passing lane, you should step on the gas and get it done. Continuing to drive 72 while passing someone doing 70 and backing up traffic just because you can is bs!
caughtinthemiddle 10 months, 1 week ago
If the speed limit is 70, you have no business passing and exceeding the speed limit. Tailgating is unacceptable, unsafe, and aggressive. Get with the traffic flow at or below the speed limit: you're not going to be late to your whatever unless your lack of planning makes it happen, and even that does not justify breaking the law.
just_another_bozo_on_this_bus 10 months, 1 week ago
Clearly, it's drivers like you that this "aggressive (read: stupid and homicidal) drivers" patrol will be looking for.
hipper_than_hip 10 months, 1 week ago
Caughtinthemiddel: If everyone is doing 77mph and you're doing 70mph, that makes you the outlier and the one causing problems.
just_another_bozo_on_this_bus 10 months, 1 week ago
No, that makes all of those breaking the law lawbreakers. They have a responsibility to respect the right of other motorists to drive in a lawful manner. A lead foot is not a license to be an a--hole.
caughtinthemiddle 10 months, 1 week ago
First, try spelling my name correctly.
Secondly, your comment is as unsound as your spelling skill. The simple fact--and this is important--is that you can't do stuff just because you want to. There are speed laws for a real reason, none of which include your determination of the "right" speed for you as opposed to the rest of society. If you are speeding and I'm not, you have no right--let alone your apparent God-given mandate--to tell me I'm the one causing problems. Your driving style is the cause of many, many accidents and far more road-rage incidents.
Criminy, people, you're in charge of a couple of tons of instant death out there on the highway. What gives you the right to determine you are above the law?
just_another_bozo_on_this_bus 10 months, 1 week ago
Clearly, a good driver will look at what is coming up behind them before "jumping" into the passing lane. But that doesn't mean a driver who is driving the legal maximum speed limit should have to be stuck behind a slow-moving vehicle merely to be polite to an idiot driving well over the speed limit who can't be bothered to slow down to something approaching the speed limit till the driver in front of them has had time to complete their passing of slower moving vehicles.
Topple 10 months, 1 week ago
There's typically more than one lane for a reason. One to set your pace (right lane), one to pass those who are below your comfortable pace (left lane). If you don't like being tailgated, stay in the right lane.
just_another_bozo_on_this_bus 10 months, 1 week ago
I see neither your comprehension nor your understanding of the rules of the road are particularly good. (and by rules of the road, I don't mean the ones you make up.)
hear_me 10 months, 1 week ago
Who needs NASCAR.
just_another_bozo_on_this_bus 10 months, 1 week ago
Why do they need special patrols for this? Shouldn't they always be looking out for aggressive drivers?
LarryNative 10 months, 1 week ago
That's what I was thinking too. Next will there be a special patrol for home invasions?
Crazy_Larry 10 months, 1 week ago
They have tax-dollars to spend.
hear_me 10 months, 1 week ago
There are not enough troopers to do this full time.
guppypunkhead 10 months, 1 week ago
K10 can be pretty wild- glad they will have more patrols there! But I'll have to warn husband to quit speeding. :)
Topple 10 months, 1 week ago
I occassionally have work that brings me to Overland Park....driving back to Lawrence at 5pm is NOT pleasant. People drive 85-90 at about 10 feet apart in packs of 20 cars side by side because noone wants to be passed. It's terrifying, and I consider myself a somewhat aggressive driver.
Crazy_Larry 10 months, 1 week ago
LOL! NASCAR wannabes! :)
Benthic 10 months, 1 week ago
I completely agree and it has been this way for years. I don't know why they keep raising the speed limit on this highway when they cannot effectively enforce the speed limit.
Bunny_Hotcakes 10 months, 1 week ago
K-10 at rush hour makes me want to style my hair in a mowhawk, dress in chain mail, and weld a cow catcher to the front of my car. It is seriously Thunderdome out there sometimes.
consumer1 10 months, 1 week ago
What about the passive agressive drivers? the ones who like to box everyone else in, those folks who will pull up next to someone who is going twenty in a fourty MPH zone and then slow down to twenty? or, Those people who turn left from the far right lane, cutting in front of several oncoming cars to make sure they don't miss their turn at the last possible second. Will stupid drivers also be targeted????
johnwoods 10 months, 1 week ago
Agressive drivers are stupid drivers.
purplesage 10 months, 1 week ago
Bozo's question is well put. There isn't enough money for any number of things on a long list according to the government - but they have to have special patrols for traffic enforcement. Quit hiding in the weeds, take a high profile on the highway, and there will be an increase compliance. But wait; this probably isn't about compliance. It is about revenue.
Can anyone tell me why the sheriff is patroling state highways anyhow? I thought that was the job of the highway patrol.
Joe Hyde 10 months, 1 week ago
I wish Olathe Sheriff and the other participating agencies great success in this work. They have my support for conducting operations against aggressive drivers any time day or night.
Joe Hyde 10 months, 1 week ago
"Olathe Sheriff" is (or used to be) the handle used by area LE dispatchers when conducting station-to-station radio communications between agencies. Douglas County Sheriff's Dept. goes by the name "Lawrence Sheriff"; Franklin County Sheriff's Dept. goes by "Ottawa Sheriff", and so on.
By using the county seat's city name as a prefix, as it were, the call name is shortened, which is a time saver for the sender and receiver of LE traffic. Like 10-signals, the intent of such verbal shorthand is not secrecy but brevity.
consumer1 10 months, 1 week ago
Some of these comments clearly identify the sheeple attitude/lifestyle.
just_another_bozo_on_this_bus 10 months, 1 week ago
You should have your license revoked until you can learn to drive safely-- and please, find an anger management course.
Eride 10 months, 1 week ago
They need to actually ticket people like you who significantly speed.
johnwoods 10 months, 1 week ago
I think you may be one of those aggressive drivers!
Topple 10 months, 1 week ago
What gave you that impression?
madameX 10 months, 1 week ago
Dude, if you choose to drive way over the speed limit then that's your call, but how it is reasonable to expect everyone else to adjust their driving that just to accommodate you? The reality is that even when people are just using the passing lane to pass, if there are a lot of cars on the road (as there so often are at rush hour), it's not always safe to get over the second a speed demon pops up in your rearview mirror. It's also not always safe to floor it and match the speed, not to mention that not all cars are even capable of that (like mine, for instance, so I know that of which I speak). You don't own the road.
none2 10 months, 1 week ago
While I don't approve of what he is doing, at least he is being honest. Most of the complainers about people in the left lane are the ones who are upset because someone is keeping them from doing 85+ mph.
tanaumaga 10 months, 1 week ago
You are clearly from t-town with those statements.
caughtinthemiddle 10 months, 1 week ago
OK, BBOY, this is the clown, and you need to read the statutes governing passing in this state. I don't care what you do as long as you aren't around me, but the speed limit is the speed limit, not a suggestion, even for you. I have no regard for your breaking the law just to prove a point or to brag about how much danger you put others in by your reckless speeding. Drive as you wish, but when you get ticketed for speeding while passing, just remember that you don't make the rules.
And I'd be happy to give you a meeting place so you can come punch me in the face, big boy, unless you have trouble upholding your threats like you have trouble upholding the law.
Crazy_Larry 10 months, 1 week ago
There's a thing that most people carry, it's called a cell phone, and I will not hesitate to use mine to call the highway patrol on a fool who's driving recklessly. I give them a description of the driver and car along with the license plate number. Have fun driving like an azz. You will be caught and you will pay big time via fines and increased insurance rates. Hope it's worth it to get to Kansas City 5 minutes faster than anyone else!
labmonkey 10 months, 1 week ago
Then you are being reckless and inattentive while driving if you are paying attention to him that close and decide to call the highway patrol with your cell phone. Hopefully they will ticket you also.
Crazy_Larry 10 months, 1 week ago
Wrong. Good try though. I carefully observe these things then pull over in a safe spot and make the call. You should do the same thing.
Depeche Mode-Wrong by Arno Bauer
Starlight 10 months, 1 week ago
I'll attest to the power of the cell phone. You may be pulled over under the guise of checking to see if you have a medical condition, to possibly explain your citizen reported erratic driving. Might detain you a little while to observe you. Better hope the officer didn't witness the reported driving.
hear_me 10 months, 1 week ago
Do you suffer from road rage?
ku_tailg8 10 months, 1 week ago
I'm not going to do 15 over the speed limit but I'm also not dumb enough to hang out with the folks that are just cruising along doing the speed limit. My goal is to get ahead of the groups of cars and leave them in my rear view mirror. More problems can happen in a pack of cars then someone who is driving too fast. Also, if someone is driving fast, move over, they will be way in front of you before you know it and out of your mind. You are idiots if you just do 70 and hang out in a pack of cars waiting for something bad to happen. Watch Nascar? Big wrecks always happen in the middle of the pack.
just_another_bozo_on_this_bus 10 months, 1 week ago
"More problems can happen in a pack of cars then someone who is driving too fast."
If the cars aren't tailgating, there will be no "pack" of cars. And if the highway is so congested that traffic begins to backup, driving at a high rate of speed and tailgating in order to avoid the "pack" is not only futile, but very likely to cause an accident.
Topple 10 months, 1 week ago
How is driving 5 over the speedlimit to get away from a pack of 20 cars going the speed limit futile and likely to cause an accident? It's only futile when some idiot going the speed limit parks their butt in the passing lane next to someone else going the speed limit.
just_another_bozo_on_this_bus 10 months, 1 week ago
Please read my post again, and get back to us when you comprehend it.
notajayhawk 10 months, 1 week ago
I remember one time years ago when I lived in Missouri, the highway patrol had an "aggressive driving" campaign. I was one of approximately 130 people pulled over and ticketed that morning. Funny thing was there wasn't an "agressive driving" law in Missouri at that time, they were using statutes that didn't quite match up with what they described on the citation. The judge threw out all 130 of them.
RETICENT_IRREVERENT 10 months, 1 week ago
We need to get the East Lawrence Bypass/ I-70 connector rolling.
Topple 10 months, 1 week ago
Isn't it expected to take like 10 years to build? I hope to be out of this city well before then. City commission is forcing me to move with the reckless way they run Lawrence.
Andini 10 months, 1 week ago
I guess I won't be shaving, eating breakfast and reading the paper on my K-10 commute next week then...
just_another_bozo_on_this_bus 10 months, 1 week ago
Actually, although all of those are pretty stupid, they are not "aggressive." So maybe it's the perfect week to do all of the above.
Topple 10 months, 1 week ago
You should see the way he shaves...double fisting Mach 3 razors....
Katara 10 months, 1 week ago
You can still do those things. Just make sure next week isn't the week you pick to stop sniffing glue.
Looks like I picked the wrong week to quit smoking... by digitalaero
paulveer 10 months, 1 week ago
Purplesage made a good point about visibility of enforcement. The more visible the police presence, the more compliance. The more stealthy, the less compliance overall, but more "catching" as in revenue. Kind of like when the City of Lawrence invested in the stealth patrol cars. Instilling pride and respect in our local police force apparently was not near of the top of the list of rationals going into that decision.
notajayhawk 10 months, 1 week ago
I used to live on the East Coast within commuting distance of NYC. One of the major commuting routes from the north was I-684. What the state troopers would do is have three cruisers side by side driving at the speed limit during rush hours.
mikekt 10 months, 1 week ago
Well, nobody likes the way that everyone else drives!
Starlight 10 months, 1 week ago
George Carlin said it best: Everyone driving slower than you is an idiot. Everyone driving faster than you is a maniac.
Crazy_Larry 10 months, 1 week ago
Does the highway patrol still use air planes to catch speeders? I got pulled over once on I-70 after a plane clocked my speed...I pulled over the hill and there were 6 or 7 highway patrol cars in the center of the I-70 waving speeders over to collect their tickets. I got off / lucky because I was driving a government car in my BDUs.
lionbacker 10 months, 1 week ago
I find it my civic duty to tailgate the hell out of people driving slow in the passing lane, even if the right hand lane is open, I will not pass until the idiot moves over. I guarantee that people driving slow in the passing lane on K-10 cause way more accidents than I do driving 85+ MPH. I am getting ready to put a sign on the left side of my car that says " GET THE F___ OUT OF THE PASSING LANE", just so you idiots understand my message.
just_another_bozo_on_this_bus 10 months, 1 week ago
We get it-- you have severe emotional problems, and you express them on public highways, putting not only yourself and the car and passengers you're tailgating in danger, but all other cars and passengers nearby.
Grow up, please, or give up your driver's license.
labmonkey 10 months, 1 week ago
I would like to see of a more "head up the a$$ driving campaign" to nail texters and those going slow in the left lane. Usually when someone is going slower than the rest of traffic, they are usually occupied with their phone or texting. Texting should be a DUI offense and I don't know why it is allowed while driving. Also people with a dog in their lap cannot be paying full attention to the road.
Also... why isn't the left lane law enforced?
merrill 10 months, 1 week ago
K-10 will keep them busy for years.
K-10 probably needs 6 new troopers 16 out of 24 hours at least Monday thru Friday.
Early morning drivers can be quite reckless. Speeding,Tailgating and texting/cell phone talk are big issues.
merrill 10 months, 1 week ago
70 MPH and in the left lane is not against the law.....
80 mph and in the left lane is against the law...
just_another_bozo_on_this_bus 10 months, 1 week ago
There is nothing in your link that says that.
just_another_bozo_on_this_bus 10 months, 1 week ago
No, it doesn't say that at all. It says the left lane is for passing only. It says absolutely nothing about the speed you must (or must not) drive while passing.
Aiko 10 months, 1 week ago
A bunch of self-appointed "Barney Fife Deputies" out there! ......Citizens Arrest, Citizens Arrest!
If there is someone behind you and you are in the PASSING LANE move over to the right lane so they/we can continue our trip, please.
just_another_bozo_on_this_bus 10 months, 1 week ago
No one is arguing that people should be allowed to camp out in the passing lane. But riding someone's backside at an unsafe and illegal distance simply because they aren't passing at the rate of speed you demand is childish, selfish and dangerous.
notajayhawk 10 months, 1 week ago
"70 MPH and in the left lane is not against the law"
Actually, it is, unless your passing or one of the other exceptions applies (e.g. approaching a left exit).
just_another_bozo_on_this_bus 10 months, 1 week ago
But 80 mph is always illegal, although it's within the "grace" range on the turnpike, where the speed limit is 75.
Aiko 10 months, 1 week ago
Agreed! But I think the problem is that the ones who want to be followed slowly and not passed are the cause. The drivers who need to pass are getting frustrated and inch up close and/or flick headlights to get their point across. Which they should not have to do if people were more aware of their surroundings.
merrill 10 months, 1 week ago
I like to allow all speeding/tailgating drivers the privilege of being in front of me. You bet way ahead of me.
At 70 mph I will be passing someone perhaps not as quickly as 80 mph drivers would like however allowing speeding drivers the privilege of going ahead is still my priority.
HardwoodGoat 10 months, 1 week ago
I occasionally have projects in kc, I-70 all the way baby! Way less idiots than on that cluster K-10. K-10 IS saturated with idiots, idiots that apparently have never heard of a cushion of space for reaction time, or cruise control. Try it some time, it really works. These are the same people that do 25 mph on Iowa when the speed limit is 40 mph. Bunch of turds farting around Lawrence.
Katara 10 months, 1 week ago
I don't understand the tailgaters who insist on riding your butt when they can clearly see there is no way you can get over into the next lane to allow them to pass you. Or that the car/truck in front of you is the one causing the issue.
hear_me 10 months, 1 week ago
Looks like a lot of K-10 drivers need an attitude adjustment and clarification on laws regarding driving a motor vehicle. I applaud Johnson County for doing this. And, where is Douglas County?
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