At Kentucky State Police Post 3, four separate law enforcement agencies based in Bowling Green met together earlier this summer to form a joint operation to increase their visibility on the roads as part of an effort intended to combat recent driving-related violations and prevent further collisions.

The agencies involved include the Bowling Green Police Department, KSP Post 3, WKUPD and the Warren County Sheriff’s Office. The joint operation is ongoing and will continue throughout the month as it runs in conjunction with the Department of Highway Safety’s traffic enforcement campaigns, KSP Trooper Katan Parker said on Tuesday.

The joint operation will focus on:

• Distracted driving
• Impaired driving
• Reckless driving
• Seat belt violations
• Speeding

The operation is intended to get the community “under control” and to show the city that the law enforcement agencies are taking their jobs seriously, Parker said.

“We just want to make the community a safer place,” he said.

According to a KSP press release on July 15, from March to June, there were over 60 collisions and 180 traffic citations issued on Scottsville Road.

The release stated that during this same time period on Nashville Road, south of I-165, there were 47 collisions and over 120 citations issued.

Given these high rates of violations, the operation is currently focusing on Nashville and Scottsville roads.

However, already established routes will not be affected, Parker said. Certain units are assigned to the operation at any given time, he said, and they coordinate among each other to determine who will be covering which area.

WKUPD Chief Mitchell Walker said this operation is just another opportunity to work with the other agencies for the betterment of the community.

“I think that anytime we can work together and train together in our communities to solve problems is a benefit to our communities,” Walker said on Wednesday.

This operation is also important for all of the officers in each agency, Walker said, because they can learn from each other and use each other’s resources.

“It’s certainly a benefit to continue to foster those relationships into the future,” Walker said.

Since the number of violations surrounding campus has slowed down during the summer months, Walker said that WKUPD will be aiding the other agencies in patrolling either Nashville or Scottsville roads, alleviating any strain that might be on one department.

News reporter Cameron Shaw can be reached at [email protected].