GOP Senators’ statement on more patrols on CT highways: “Empower officers”

For Immediate Release

Senate Republican Leader Stephen Harding, Sen. Tony Hwang, Ranking Senator on the Transportation Committee, and Sen. Paul Cicarella, Ranking Senator on the Public Safety and Security Committee issued the following statement with regard to the announcement that more police patrols will be added to state highways to address driver and pedestrian fatalities:

“We have a shared goal: to prevent future tragedies. There has been a rash of crashes, and we just saw the tragic news of the wrong-way crash on I-95 in West Haven. DOT admits that ‘all the numbers are off the chart’ with regard to excessive speeding. Our highways are starting to resemble the Wild Wild West. People on Main Street want to know what is being done to fix the situation. We must empower officers to do their jobs. Will driver impairment and smoking cannabis while driving be addressed? We also must address the increased amount of vehicles that are fleeing the police who are trying to pull them over.”

Sen. Harding added, “Route 7 is in my district. We have had a number of fatal accidents recently in New Milford. These are preventable tragedies.”