I-90 drivers stopped for speeding, cutting off or driving aggressively around a large truck who didn’t see a Washington State Trooper behind them, may need to look to the sky to understand how they were caught. State troopers are back out on I-90 this week, and in the sky, conducting an aggressive driving emphasis in east King County, where lots of big commercial semi trucks regularly travel.
During this week’s aggressive driving emphasis, troopers in a Washington State Patrol (WSP) aircraft are using the same tactics 
they employ when looking for DUI drivers at ground level. If the trooper in the air spots a vehicle speeding, cutting off or driving aggressively around a big truck, the trooper in the plane will radio ahead to officers on the ground to stop the driver.
This effort is one of four week-long emphasis patrols, all part of a Ticketing Aggressive Cars and Trucks (TACT) Project that began in September 2012 and continues through the end of this month.
“We continue to see passenger car drivers as the main cause of most truck involved collisions,” said Captain Jason Berry, Commercial Vehicle Division commander. “People need to understand they have to give these big trucks plenty of space; when there is a car vs. truck collision, there’s a good chance the people in the car will be injured.”
The last emphasis was conducted the week of March 11, 2013, when officers stopped both cars and semi trucks. Troopers cited 741 violators in March, with 670 citations given to people who were driving aggressively around the big trucks. Officers also conducted 41 inspections of commercial semi trucks, placing six trucks out of service.
Washington State Patrol says most of the King County collisions involving commercial semis occur on interstate and state routes, noting that the smaller passenger vehicles and their drivers often sustain the most damage and injuries in these accidents.
Officers will patrol many local freeways, with I-90 from Seattle to North Bend included. The aggressive driving patrols happen from 6AM – 6PM, when most collisions occur.
This TACT Project is funded with a grant from the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration. The grant is part of a program directed by Congress in 2004 to educate passenger car drivers on how to share the roadway safely with commercial vehicles.
Comments
I wonder if the police might one day also get grant funding to do not just an AGGRESSIVE driver focus but also a SUBMISSIVE drivers focus. Aggressive drivers are definitely a risk to others on the road, but submissive drivers also could use some education. I’m thinking of those who seem to be so afraid when they drive that they can’t maintain the posted speed limit, or they slowly pedal along in the left lane of a 3 (or 4!) lane highway without moving out of the way of a car trying to pass at the speed limit, or those that have 2+ people in their car but refuse to get into the empty HOV lane and make room in the mainline for those alone in their cars.
Okay, I feel better for getting that off my chest online instead of while driving!
It would be a big help if the truck climbing lane before Exit 25 was not also the LEFT EXIT LANE for Snoqualmie. That creates a criss cross of traffice passing trucks on the left and right, and zig zagging to avoid the Hwy 18 back up onto I90. Between 4PM- 7PM east bound I90 is very dangerous, and designating a truck climbing lane that is NOT part of the Exit lanes between Preston and Snoqualmie would allow drivers to safely exit the freeway.
This intersection in very dangerous. And several miles away the huge yellow signs tells drivers to stay left. ( to avoid stopped or sudden stops on Hwy 18 exit off Hwy 90. And with new no camping in left lanes enforcement, travelers and others may get confused. I drive East 90 a number of times each week to exit on Snoqualmie Parkway. And the scariest part is someone stopping in the second outside lane next to far right Exit 18 lane abd trying to squeeze in that right lane. A woman driving a black BMW X3 stopped rughtvin that out side lane hoping to squeeze in but drivers weren’t letting her. I was caught behind her with my light flashing and honking my horn as traffic was coming up on my rear doing speed limit or more. I thought I was going to get cremated .