During Spring Semester move-on weekend the Ohio State Highway Patrol issued 40 tickets to drivers on U.S. 33 and U.S. 50 in Athen County.
Some students who drove faster than the speed limit on U.S. Route 33 or U.S. Route 50 in Athens this past weekend returned to Ohio University for Spring Semester with a speeding ticket, courtesy of the Ohio State Highway Patrol troopers.
The Athens troopers with the Ohio State Highway Patrol made slightly more enforcement stops this past move-in weekend than they did during previous move-in weekends, according to data from the OSHP.
An enforcement stop is recorded by troopers when a vehicle is stopped and a citation is issued, in contrast to troopers simply giving a warning, said department spokesman Lt. Craig Cvetan.
While some students were returning to OU on Saturday, Jan. 10 to Sunday, Jan. 11, following their winter break, 40 drivers were stopped and given citations in Athens County — five more than were issued during last year’s Spring Semester move-in weekend.
About 65 percent of the tickets issued during move-in weekend were related to speeding, according to data from the OSHP.
Other tickets issued by troopers were related to drivers not wearing a seatbelt, not obeying the routes’ marked lanes, drivers being in possession of controlled substances or being under the influence of drugs or alcohol.
However, Athens OSHP Lt. George Harlow said he didn’t notice any significant spikes in traffic violations during the move-in weekend.
“Our main goal is to be visible so that the incoming students will get an idea that we are out there and we’re busy,” Harlow said. “We are more visible during (move-in weekend) but that’s in a deterrent posture than anything else.”
Troopers made 35 enforcement stops during the 2014 Spring Semester move-in weekend and 49 during the Fall Semester move-in weekend, according to data from the Ohio State Highway Patrol. During the move-in weekend for 2013’s Fall Semester, state patrol troopers made 76 enforcement stops.
Athens state troopers made an average of 21 enforcement stops per day in 2014, according to calculations made by The Post.
Cvetan said several factors contribute to the larger number of enforcement stops during move-in weekends, especially when compared to what troopers experience daily.
“Things like weather, the number of troopers available to work enforcement, overtime, other enforcement initiatives, construction and other variables may have an effect on enforcement levels,” Cvetan said in an email.
Harlow said his department typically sees an increase in traffic on U.S. Route 50 and U.S. Route 33 during move-in weekend and stations more troopers along the routes as a result.
“Generally (drivers) are all very subdued. We don’t have any trouble with them per se,” Harlow said, adding there were no major crash incidents during this year’s move-in weekend.
Closer to campus, Athens Police Department Captain Ralph Harvey said the city did not increase its parking enforcement during this Spring Semester’s move-in weekend.
“We had a lot of (officers) out sick on Friday and Saturday,” he said. “There was actually a little bit less enforcement due to sickness; it's just the flu and the stomach bug that's been going around.”
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