Police Traffic Unit Strives For ‘Omnipresence’ In Enforcement Crackdown

By Andrew Gorosko

For more than six months, town police have conducted heightened traffic enforcement, in response to continuing public complaints about traffic violations.

In July, the police department formed a two-member traffic enforcement unit, whose work includes finding traffic violators and issuing appropriate enforcement.

The traffic unit’s goal is to reduce the number of local motor vehicle accidents and related injuries by promoting the safe and efficient movement of traffic. The unit’s mission is to vigorously enforce state and local traffic laws, with the goal of an improved quality of life for town residents.

Aggressive driving, speeding, and distracted driving have been among the violations targeted by the patrol. Also, the traffic unit works to find and apprehend motorists who are driving under the influence of alcohol and/or drugs.

In the traffic unit, Officer Steve Ketchum rides a Harley-Davidson Electra Glide motorcycle while on duty. Officer David Kullgren drives an unmarked Dodge Charger sedan. They often work in tandem in enforcing traffic laws.

The traffic unit uses a large “speed trailer,” a portable radar-based device that displays motorists’ oncoming speeds. Police also recently acquired four compact, portable speed displays. The radar-based devices may be mounted on utility poles or other uprights to display the speeds of oncoming motorists.

Police also have acquired two Laser Detection and Ranging (LIDAR) units, which are lightweight handheld infrared lasers that are used to easily detect the speeds of individual approaching vehicles. Additionally, all police patrol vehicles are equipped with vehicle-mounted radar speed detection gear.

In an interview this week, Officer Ketchum and Officer Kullgren discussed their work in the traffic enforcement unit.

Officer Kullgren has been a town police officer for almost seven years.

“I believe in what we’re doing, by creating a [traffic enforcement] omnipresence,” Officer Kullgren said. “We want voluntary [traffic law] compliance whether people think we’re there or not,” he said.

“I’ve seen what happens when people do not drive safely,” Officer Kullgren said of the potential for serious motor vehicle accidents. “We see the reality and the potential consequences” that stem from motorists who speed and who drive distractedly, he said.

Consequently, the traffic unit especially seeks to deter excessive speed, he said. Its work includes finding motorists who illegally use handheld cellphones, and who violate traffic signals and stop signs. The unit also seeks out automotive equipment violations.

The traffic unit focuses its efforts on major state and town roads, including Route 25, Route 34, Route 302, Route 6, Poverty Hollow Road, Hattertown Road, Currituck Road, Hanover Road, Old Hawleyville Road, High Bridge Road, Taunton Hill Road, and Queen Street, among others. The unit also addresses complaints made by residents from all across town.

Patrolling town in the unmarked Dodge sedan provides Officer Kullgren with a higher probability for traffic enforcement success than is likely in a marked police vehicle, he said.

The emergency lighting equipment on the sedan is barely visible when the lights are switched off. But when the lights are turned on, they create a dazzling display.

Officer Ketchum has been a town policeman for almost 20 years and has long ridden motorcycles.

Riding a motorcycle allows him great maneuverability, providing the ability to travel in areas where police sedans cannot fit, he said. A motorcycle allows police to make quick responses to vehicular violations, he said.

During his years at the police department, Officer Ketchum has had several specialized roles. He is a certified bicycle patrol officer, a field training officer, a firearms instructor, and a taser instructor. He also is the police department’s fire investigator. He served as the school resource officer at Newtown High School for three years, ending that assignment in 2006.

Officer Ketchum said the varied duties of the traffic enforcement unit allow him to work pro-actively, instead of only reactively.

Besides street enforcement duties, the unit has other roles. The traffic unit identifies areas that have high accident rates, after which it develops programs to reduce the number of accidents occurring in those places. Its tasks include conducting traffic surveys, preparing reports, and formulating parking control measures for new or redeveloped commercial sites and also for new residential subdivisions.

Also, the traffic unit aids the police department investigate difficult cases involving motorists who have evaded responsibility in hit-and-run accidents. It additionally provides traffic safety education for the public and for town agencies, among other tasks.

In a traffic-related matter, Town Public Works Director Fred Hurley said this week that the town expects to install a raised crosswalk on Queen Street near Newtown Middle School by mid-October.

The planned crosswalk will be placed upon a broad speed bump known as a “speed table.” The device is designed to both provide a safe place for people to cross the street and to slow traffic. It will be installed somewhat north of the existing crosswalk near the school. The existing crosswalk will be removed.

The town installed a raised crosswalk on Glover Avenue near Meadow Road last month.