The Cookeville Police Department increasing patrols to curb speeding across the community.
Cookeville Police Chief Scott Winfree said the department hopes to change driving habits by increasing visibility. Winfree said he wants to see fewer injuries, and property damage. Winfree said speeding is often times not intentional, and most offenders do so when they are not paying attention.
“When [drivers] are inside a car or a truck, and you think, you know, you’re inside a three or 4,000 pound guided missile essentially,” Winfree said. “A small lapse in attention or behavior or judgement and the next thing you know, you’ve had a crash. At the least, you have property damage, but if it’s worse, it may be a fatality.”
Winfree said a factor in people not paying attention may be the design of modern vehicles. Winfree said the smooth ride and good handling might cause people to not notice their speed.
“Sure, every once in awhile, somebody gets in a big hurry and has to be somewhere, they’re running late, I understand that,” Winfree said. “But I believe a lot of it is you get very comfortable in your vehicle, and all of a sudden you’re running 80 miles an hour down the interstate and you don’t even realize it.”
Winfree said speeding happens everywhere, but highways and construction zones are areas where speeding related crashes are more common. Winfree said intersections are also common crash sites, especially if drivers are not patient.
“Intersections tend to be the worst because someone tries to beat a light and they speed up, or someone doesn’t see someone coming down the road and runs a stop sign,” Winfree said. “That’s more of the traffic infractions where people aren’t paying attention to traffic devices, signaling devices and what not.”
Winfree said speeding can be especially dangerous in bad weather, as rain on the roads might cause drivers to lose control or hydroplane. If it’s the first rain in a long time, Winfree said materials ingrained in the pavement can rise up and become slick.
