FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
May 14, 2024
CONTACT: ARRIALE TABSON
Mobile: 615-767-3242
TENNESSEE HIGHWAY SAFETY OFFICE, SHELBY COUNTY TRAFFIC TASK FORCE ANNOUNCE RECENT SUCCESS
Year to Date, Shelby County Has Experienced 30 Percent Reduction in Traffic Fatalities
MEMPHIS, Tenn. – On Tuesday, May 21, the Tennessee Highway Safety Office will join the Shelby County Traffic Task Force to announce its recent success in reducing traffic crashes and fatalities in Shelby County. The task force, established in 2024, held its first meeting in February to plan collaborative initiatives focused on combatting dangerous driving behaviors. This plan included saturation patrols during Good Friday weekend, sobriety checks during St. Patrick’s Day weekend, and a distracted-driving enforcement bus tour in April. According to Tennessee’s Integrated Traffic Analysis Network (TITAN), Shelby County has experienced 30 percent reduction in traffic fatalities, this year to date.
Participating agencies of the Shelby County Traffic Task Force include Tennessee Highway Patrol, Shelby County Sheriff’s Office, Memphis Police Department, Bartlett Police Department, Collierville Police Department, Germantown Police Department, and Millington Police Department with support from Mothers Against Drunk Driving, Tennessee Department of Transportation, and the City of Memphis Mayor’s Office.
WHAT: Shelby County Traffic Task Force Press Event
WHEN: Tuesday, May 21, 2024
10 a.m. CST
WHERE: Memphis Police Department – Austin Peay Station
3430 Austin Peay Highway, Memphis, TN 38128
SPEAKERS:
Director Buddy Lewis, Tennessee Highway Safety Office
Captain Joe Terry, Tennessee Highway Patrol
Chief Deputy Anthony Buckner, Shelby County Sheriff’s Office
Assistant Chief Don Crowe, Memphis Police Department
Chief Jeff Cox, Bartlett Police Department
Chief Dale Lane, Collierville Police Department
The Tennessee Department of Safety and Homeland Security’s mission is to serve, secure, and protect the people of Tennessee.
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The Tennessee Highway Safety Office (THSO) is a division of the Tennessee Department of Safety and Homeland Security advocating for traffic safety. The THSO works in tandem with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) to implement statewide programs addressing occupant protection, impaired driving, speed enforcement, pedestrian and bicycle safety, and crash data collection and analysis. Programs administered by the THSO are 100 percent federally funded. The THSO’s mission is to effectively develop, implement, and evaluate these programs. To learn more, please visit www.tntrafficsafety.org.