City gets funding for traffic safety enforcement campaigns

In recent years, Illinois has experienced significant reductions in motor vehicle crash fatalities. While this is great news, there is still work to be done to make Illinois roads as safe as possible. The Illinois Department of Transportation's Division of Traffic Safety is making the effort to do that through the Sustained Traffic Enforcement Program (STEP) which will help Illinois maximize the effect of sustained, stepped-up, year-long traffic enforcement.

The West Chicago Police Department, along with hundreds of other law enforcement and highway safety agencies across Illinois, has received a STEP Grant which will provide sworn police officers funding for additional hours dedicated to traffic enforcement for child restraint, seatbelt, speeding, and alcohol related violations.

The Traffic Grant started October 1, 2011 and will conclude on September 30, 2012. During this time period there will be different enforcement campaigns which are aimed to help educate drivers who violate Illinois traffic laws. The goal of the program is to make the highways safer to use in Illinois and to persuade everyone to use their seatbelt, reduce the amount of fatal crashes and impaired driving. The first of these campaigns will begin November 14, 2011 and run through November 28, 2011. This is the first of eight scheduled campaigns that are planned throughout this grant period.