During the first two months that enforcement was being implemented in the newly established traffic safety corridors in town, Sheriff’s deputies issued 253 citations to drivers for violations.

MCSO Capt. Larry Kratzer reported to the Town Council at its Feb. 2 regular session that number is roughly 40 percent of the total tickets issued during the period.

The safety corridors have been established on Saguaro Blvd. between Desert Vista and Grande Blvd. and on Palisades Blvd. between Saguaro and El Lago boulevards.

Kratzer said this has not been a highly visible enforcement effort.

“We would never use all our resources in these areas and neglect other parts of town,” Kratzer said. “We are making sure that when we see a violation (within the corridors) we are making the stop.”

Kratzer also noted that deputy discretion is still a factor for stops within the safety zones. He said that has been a concern for some who feel citations should be issued for all violations in the safety corridors. MCSO does not want to take away the discretion of the deputy making the stop, Kratzer said. He noted there are a lot of factors that can come into play when deciding to write a citation.

He did not have the official numbers, but Kratzer said of the traffic stops made within the safety corridors, citations were issued in approximately 70 percent of the instances with 30 percent receiving a warning.

During the two months reported there were 627 traffic stops made by deputies town-wide. Of those, 253 were within the safety corridors. Breaking down the stops within the zones, Kratzer said 65 percent were for speeding (five were for criminal speed – 20 miles per hour or more over the speed limit), 17 percent were non-moving violations such as using a cell phone and 13 percent were for failure to stop at a traffic signal or stop sign. Four drivers were cited for driving with a suspended license.