CHP begins Sebastopol traffic enforcement
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By JULIE JOHNSON
THE PRESS DEMOCRAT
Published: Sunday, February 6, 2011 at 3:36 p.m.
Speeders, red-light runners and other traffic law violators will come under closer scrutiny in downtown Sebastopol starting Monday when CHP officers join city police in patrolling the city.
The CHP will devote officers to the two state highways that intersect Sebastopol to help curb the small west county city’s dismal traffic collision record, CHP officials said.
Sebastopol, which has a population of about 7,800 residents, was ranked as the second worst in the state for fatal/injury collisions in 2009 among cities in comparable size, according to the California Office of Traffic Safety.
“Part of me is a little embarrassed that we need the assistance from another agency to get our traffic violations under control,” Sebastopol Police Chief Jeff Weaver said. “But the reality is we have such a high traffic volume and we do need the help.”
One person was killed and 66 people were injured in crashes in 2009, according to the office of traffic safety. Alcohol was a factor in three of those collisions, including the fatality.
The high number of crashes reflects the amount of traffic channeled through downtown on Highway 116 and Highway 12, Weaver said.
Each day about 35,000 drivers travel through the intersection where the two highways meet.
“That’s a lot for a town of less than 8,000 people,” Weaver said. “We’re never going to be the best in the state when it comes to collision ratings just because of the traffic volume.”
“But to be second worst is not acceptable,” he added.
Weaver, CHP Captain Greg Tracey and CHP Sgt. Robert Mota developed the plan over lunch in Cotati about a week ago.
Three officers from the CHP’s neighborhood patrol team and its beat patrols will cover the portions of the highways that extend through city limits and into their regular rural routes, Mota said.
The officers will focus on the most dangerous traffic violations, including intoxication, speeding and distraction, Mota said.
They may patrol the area at any time on any day of the week, however they will in general focus on high traffic times during the weekdays, he said.
“There won’t be any set time or date. They’ll go in as schedules allow, spend some time trying to be a visual presence,” Mota said.
“It will increase officer presence on the state routes and increase our presence in the neighborhoods,” Weaver said.
The state ranking reflects the number of incidents compared to population size, according to Chris Cochran, office of traffic safety spokesman. Sebastopol was compared with cities with 2,500 to 10,000 people.