THORNTON, CO… The City of Thornton Police Department is one of only two city police departments along the I-25 corridor to receive a CDOT grant to purchase equipment and fund speed enforcement operations. The grant is part of an effort to reduce speed related fatalities in the metro area.

Thornton will use the grant money to purchase handheld lasers that determine both the speed of a vehicle, and the distance between two vehicles. This will allow officers to issue citations for both speeding and for following too closely, or ‘tailgating.’ According to Thornton PD statistics, tailgating is the cause of 57 percent of the accidents in the City.

Speed enforcement operations will be focused in high accident, high volume and high speed roadways. These operations will be manpower intensive and designed to contact as many speeding vehicles as possible. “Through these operations we hope to educate drivers to their driving habits and change behaviors that contribute to motor vehicle crashes,” says Thornton Police Sergeant Lee Vitgenos. “The ultimate goal is to save lives.”

For more information call Thornton Police Sergeant Lee Vitgenos at 720-977-5300.