Media: Photos from the joint press conference in North Augusta can be found in the SC Department of Public Safety’s online photo album.

COLUMBIA – The South Carolina Department of Public Safety (SCDPS) joins four other Southeastern states for Operation Southern Slow Down this week to crack down on excessive speeding and reduce speed-related deaths and collisions.

Law enforcement officials from Georgia and South Carolina held joint press conferences on Monday, July 15 in North Augusta, South Carolina, and Savannah, Georgia, which served as a kick-off to the enforcement and education campaign for the two states.  Other states participating in the weeklong campaign include Alabama, Florida, and Tennessee.

During this period, troopers and officers with each agency will concentrate enforcement efforts on interstates and state highways to put the brakes on drivers traveling at speeds dangerously above the legal limit. Motorists in South Carolina can expect to see increased presence and enforcement from the SC Highway Patrol and SC State Transport Police along the state’s major interstates from July 15 -19.

“It is a privilege and a pleasure to work alongside our law enforcement counterparts across the Southeast to address the unnecessary decision to speed excessively,” said Robert G. Woods, IV, Director of the South Carolina Department of Public Safety. “Our aim is to educate the public on the dangers of speeding and correct reckless behavior before it leads to disaster. Through a collective, united effort such as this, we are able to focus our resources and drive down the number of speed-related collisions.”

In 2023, speed was a factor in 10,789 collisions and 99 fatalities during South Carolina’s 100 Deadly Days of Summer travel period. This period is marked between Memorial Day and Labor Day each year.

Nationally, 12,151 people died in crashes involving speed in 2022, a 28 percent increase from 2019, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). Data from NHTSA also shows that speeding was a factor in 28 percent of total fatal crashes in the U.S. in 2021 compared to 26 percent in 2019.

"Speeding is a big deal because it threatens the safety of everyone traveling on our roads," Allen Poole, Director of the Georgia Governor's Office of Highway Safety said. “State troopers and local law enforcement officers enforce speed limits to save lives and driving the speed limit will help everyone safely reach their destination on every trip.” 
Operation Southern Slow Down began in 2017 and now runs concurrent with NHTSA’s Speeding Slows You Down national awareness and enforcement campaign.

In addition to enforcement, SCDPS will run the Speeding Catches Up With You paid media campaign throughout the month on billboards around the state, as well as on social media.

NHTSA offers the following safety reminders: 

• The necessary stopping distance quadruples every time a driver doubles their speed. 
• Allow more stopping time for bigger vehicles, or when traveling downhill on wet or uneven pavement.  
• Apply the brakes before entering a curve. 
• Set a good example for young drivers by driving at the speed limit. 
• If speeding drivers are following too closely, allow them to pass.  
• Always wear a seat belt.

The South Carolina Department of Public Safety includes the Highway Patrol, State Transport Police, Bureau of Protective Services, Office of Highway Safety and Justice Programs and the South Carolina Law Enforcement Officers Hall of Fame. Our mission is to ensure public safety by protecting and serving the people of South Carolina and its visitors.