Traffic operations in San Carlos and Belmont on Wednesday and Thursday last week resulted in 127 citations issued and the arrest of nine drivers, according to the San Mateo County Sheriff’s Office.
On Wednesday, May 4, Sheriff’s Office motorcycle deputies teamed up with Belmont police officers to conduct a saturation enforcement operation focusing on dangerous driving behaviors that put the safety of pedestrians and cyclists at risk, from speeding to making illegal turns to failing to yield or provide a right of way to bicyclists and pedestrians.
The operation, which ran from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m., led to 88 citations issued in both cities, including 48 citations for pedestrian safety violations, 17 citations for using a cellphone while driving, 2 citations for seatbelt violations and 20 citations for miscellaneous violations. In addition, one driver was arrested for failure to comply with license restrictions, and a vehicle was towed because the driver didn’t have a valid license, the Sheriff’s Office said.
“This is the first of several planned saturation deployments scheduled to be performed throughout San Mateo County,” officials said.
The following day, the San Mateo County Sheriff’s Office conducted a sobriety and driver’s license checkpoint between the 700-800 blocks of El Camino Real in San Carlos. During the checkpoint, which ran from 6 p.m. to 2 a.m., 720 vehicles were screened, 23 field sobriety tests were conducted and one driver was arrested for DUI. Another six drivers were arrested and released with a citation for driving on a suspended license, while 27 drivers were cited for driving while unlicensed, the Sheriff’s Office reported. In addition, 12 drivers were cited for driving without their license in possession, 1 was cited for driving with an open container, another was cited for a miscellaneous equipment violation and one driver was arrested and released with a citation for an outstanding warrant.
“This planned checkpoint was part of an on-going effort to reduce collisions related to impaired driving and increase public safety,” the Sheriff’s Office said.
