Union County Sheriff Shawn Dyer has gotten a much-needed boost to his ongoing efforts to stop dangerous drivers on the mountains, teaming up with Georgia State Patrol for a recent weekend of dedicated traffic enforcement that netted 238 motorist contacts, plus multiple arrests.
Since coming into office, the sheriff has meaningfully increased traffic enforcement, particularly on the curvy mountain roads in the south end of the county around Suches and in the areas of State Routes 60, 348, 180 and US 129.
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But the problem of people joyriding the mountains has gotten bad, especially with the nicer weather moving in, causing dangerous conditions for the rest of the motoring public.
Tragically, a 17-year-old Blairsville resident lost his life on Blood Mountain April 11, and investigators are looking into the possibility that the accident was caused by another driver going too fast to maintain lane.
Following that accident, Sheriff Dyer was able to convince GSP to send four troopers to join a half dozen of his deputies on a local enforcement drive the weekend of April 17, with concentrated patrols on the above-mentioned highways.
UCSO spent upwards of 18 hours a day over that Friday, Saturday and Sunday, and GSP did likewise during the daylight hours of the same time period.
“Weekends are the worst for this type of activity,” Sheriff Dyer said. “This still happens through the week, but not nearly as bad. It starts on Fridays, gets worse on Saturdays, and sometimes Sunday is the worst day.
“And they’re starting to do it Sunday night now because they know we’re there in the daytime, so we’re going to have to do it 24 hours a day.”
The 238 driver contacts featured a mix of warnings and tickets, though writing tickets wasn’t the point of the effort, said Sheriff Dyer, but “to improve their driving.”
On top of catching speeders, many of whom were from out of town, the dedicated traffic enforcement resulted in multiple arrests, including two DUIs and a wanted individual, and several vehicles were impounded.
So far, residents have provided very positive feedback on the sheriff’s ramped up traffic enforcement, and the public will be happy to learn that this was just the first of many increased patrols in partnership with Georgia State Patrol.
“This is going to be a long-term effort to take back our roads,” said Dyer, who wants to foster a zero-tolerance reputation for Union County. “After multiple talks with GSP, they are committing to help all summer and fall.
“I’m proud of that. We’ve never really gotten that commitment from them before, but we’re getting it now, and I’m committed to doing the same thing. So, with both of us working together, we should be able to curb the dangerous manner of driving on our mountain roads.”
Of course, as long as motorists follow the laws, they don’t have to worry about getting pulled over amid heightened patrols.
“Joyriders – and that includes cars and motorcycles – just need to come up and respect our roads, respect our speed limits, and respect the people that live here,” Sheriff Dyer said. “I hope we can get up there and not write a ticket for a month.
“I don’t like writing tickets. We’re not here just to write tickets. It’s dangerous for our officers to write tickets up there, because there’s no good pull-offs, and they may be standing in the road writing a ticket with cars going around them.
“So, it’s dangerous for them to do it, I don’t like doing it, but we have to do it. We just want drivers to comply with the law. If they comply, we’re good.”
Not only do the mountains become safer if drivers respect the rules of the road, but the public nuisance aspect greatly diminishes, according to the sheriff.
“People get tired of hearing the loud cars running wide open all weekend long,” Sheriff Dyer said. “It interrupts their peace of life living close to these roads.”
Added Dyer, “I appreciate the support of the people that live here. We’re going to try everything we can do to keep this place a peaceful town.”
