The Forsyth County Sheriff’s Office (FCSO) has received a grant to go toward local DUI enforcement. The monies will go toward the Highway Enforcement of Aggressive Traffic (H.E.A.T.) program and assist with reducing local traffic crashes and dangerous driving behaviors.
In a press release from the Sheriff’s Office, the announcement was made yesterday that $77,680.64 was awarded by the Governor’s Office of Highway Safety. Forsyth County was one of 21 law enforcement agencies in Georgia to receive the grant for the 2022 fiscal year.
“Traffic concerns are one of our citizens' most prevalent complaints. Keeping our citizens safe on our roadways is an incredibly important job for FCSO. Grants such as this HEAT grant help us do just that, keep our citizens safe by helping us take dangerous drivers off our roads,” said Sheriff Ron Freeman.
As part of their campaign against DUI and “Click It or Ticket,” The Sheriff’s Office says throughout the year, they will organize more road checks, sobriety checkpoints, and high visibility patrols.
H.E.A.T. grants fund traffic enforcement units in counties throughout the state. The program was designed to assist Georgia jurisdictions with the highest rates of traffic crashes, injuries, and fatalities with grants awarded based on impaired driving and speeding data.
“With the increase in the number of persons killed in traffic crashes in Georgia and across the nation over the last year, the Governor’s Office of Highway Safety is working with partners like Forsyth County Sheriff’s Office to implement programs designed to stop the risky driving behaviors that are contributing to a majority of our serious-injury and fatality crashes,” Allen Poole, Director of the Governor’s Office of Highway Safety said. “Many of the fatal traffic crashes on our roads are preventable, and we will continue to work with our educational and enforcement partners to develop programs and initiatives that are designed to get Georgia to our goal of zero traffic deaths.”
The goal of the H.E.A.T. program is to combat crashes, injuries and fatalities caused by impaired driving and speeding, while also increasing seatbelt use and educating the public about traffic safety and the dangers of DUI.
