Savannah - Gov. Nathan Deal on Thursday unveiled a plan to hire 60 additional highway safety officers around Savannah's bustling port and metro Atlanta's most congested corridors in response to recent deadly crashes involving tractor trailers on I-16 that have shocked south Georgia and galvanized local politicians.
Deal plans a $10 million annual appropriation to pay for the extra commercial vehicle enforcement officers, who will patrol "high crash corridors" near I-16 and I-95 as well as the traffic-choked highways leading to Atlanta. The cash for the new positions comes from the budgets of the Department of Public Safety and the Georgia Ports Authority.
The congestion along the highways is expected to only grow. The Port of Savannah's projected 5 percent annual growth over the next decade, partly a result of a long-planned deepening plan, is expected to result in a crush of new trucking traffic near the port and through Atlanta's congested corridors.
"While an expansion of the Savannah Harbor means jobs for Georgians and a boost to our economy, it will also mean an increase in commercial vehicle traffic," said Deal. "The safety of our drivers and the effective transportation of goods are of critical importance."
Politicians were jolted into action by two deadly wrecks took place within one month of each other. An April 22 crash involving a tractor-trailer killed five nursing students from Georgia Southern University. On a stretch of road about 20 miles away, an 18-wheeler smashed into two cars on May 20 and caught fire after witnesses said it drifted in and out of lanes. Five people were also killed in that wreck.
Federal lawmakers have also called for sweeping changes. U.S. Rep. Buddy Carter joined a group of House Democrats in requesting new safety regulations for truck drivers, and Georgia's Republican senators are pressing Department of Transportation to require speed limiting technology on trucks.
Deal's plan was spurred by Jimmy Deloach, an influential Savannah politician and developer whose 21-year-old granddaughter Abbie was among the victims in the April wreck. It would hike the number of commercial vehicle enforcement officers in Georgia to nearly 300. These officers are charged with scrutinizing commercial vehicles for proper permits and safety equipment and probing for potential violations.
Department of Public Safety Commissioner Mark McDonough said the infusion of new officers "could not have come at a more strategic time with the beginning of the Savannah Harbor Expansion Project."
State officials are wading into a complex policy debate with the move. Federal policy makers are weighing a range of trucking regulations, from loosening restrictions on truck lengths to new restrictions on driver hours. Others want new rules requiring speed regulators and collision avoidance systems. But experts are sharply divided over which strategies are most effective.
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