Speeders Beware - Radar in Gwinnett is on its Way Back

Speeders beware, it won’t be long before radar is back up and running throughout Gwinnett County. City by city, the ability to trap speeders with the use of radar is being regained following last week's resolution of the Service Delivery Strategy dispute. So far, Snellville radar is reportedly back up and running with other cities just waiting for the paperwork to be complete. Gwinnett County isn’t saying much about when it expects to have radar back up and running, but Loganville officials say it won't be long for it to be back on the city streets in the county.

“We’re just waiting for the paperwork to go though, but we haven’t been without for long - and it is really only a few roads in Gwinnett County,” Loganville Police Chief Mike McHugh said.

With no dispute between Loganville and Walton County, radar has always been an option for LPD in most of the city limits. The city’s agreement with the state for the Gwinnett County side of the city also was in force until the beginning of this year, so the sanctions didn’t have much of an impact on Loganville.

Other cities, such as Suwanee, also reported that the impact wasn’t that great. Suwanee Patch reported that Suwanee police records show that speeding arrests were down slightly. However, there wasn't too much of an impact on the number of citations as policing was stepped up in other areas such as following too closely or improper lane change. The county also found a way around the issue pending a resolution to the SDS agreement. Since the Sheriff’s Department was not affected by the sanctions, radar duties were picked up by deputies on random days to keep speeders in check. The arrests were then made by the relevant jurisdiction.

Gwinnett Sheriff Butch Conway initiated the Sheriff’s Office Traffic Unit on Feb. 7, 2011, assigning eight deputies to the force for this purpose.

“I wanted to make sure speed enforcement remained a priority in Gwinnett County in order to maintain highway safety and save lives,” Conway said.

Following the successful resolution of the SDS dispute last week, it is simply a matter of time before laser-activated traffic stops will again be a regular occurrence throughout Gwinnett County.