Campus police attribute an increase in traffic citations on campus to an overall decrease in auto accidents and collisions over the course of the year.

According to figures released by the department as of Oct. 1, campus police have issued 977 traffic citations while calls to respond to auto accidents remained low at 21 reported incidents. In 2007, campus police issued 660 tickets and responded to 59 accidents.

Civil engineering professor Kevan Shafizadeh teaches classes on traffic engineering. He was not surprised about the connection between more citations being issued and the corresponding drop in auto accidents, saying that tickets can alter how drivers conduct themselves on the road.

“Citations have a good way of changing people’s behavior quickly,” Shafizadeh said. “They respond to hits in their pocketbook.”

Lt. Dan Davis credited the link with following the three main approaches to reducing accidents: education, informing the community of new traffic changes on campus; engineering, making changes to how drivers navigate campus roadways; and enforcement, citing drivers for violating traffic rules. Campus police commonly refer to this approach as the three E’s.

Before the July 1 cellphone ban took effect, campus police and other law enforcement agencies informed the public through advertisements, television commercials and public safety forums that new restrictions would be in place. Cell phone violations, a product of the ban, have not played a significant role in the increase. Only 68 of the 977 citations this year were cellphone-related incidents.

University Transportation, Access and Parking Services sent out e-mails and bulletins to students and faculty about new traffic changes, including new lane barriers on State University Drive South and planned barriers near the Health Center

The engineering aspect involves mapping traffic flow through the campus and making suggestions as to how to improve it. Shafizadeh and his transportation engineering students demonstrated how this would be done by performing an intersection analysis Thursday on Sac State’s northern entrance at the intersection of J Street and Carlson Drive. They were studying the effects of traffic delays during peak times.

Tim Kesner, civil engineering senior, rated the J Street intersection in terms of efficiency “between a D and E.” He noted that during the intersection test, which took place between 4 to 6 p.m., not many cars are using the intersection. His classmate, Nicole Bieniek, civil engineering and business management senior, tallied the individual cars crossing their portion of the intersection using a DB-400 intersection counter. Fellow civil engineering seniors Zack Fraser and Emmanuel Palamo track the seconds each traffic light is in operation.

With the information collected during Thursday’s test, Shafizadeh’s students hope to offer suggestions during their class about how traffic flow can be improved at this intersection.

Another factor that could play a role in the reduction of accidents, Shafizadeh added, might be a decrease in vehicle traffic coming through the campus. On highly traveled roads, he said, one would expect to see a high rate of crashes, whereas a residential street would see a lower rate.

Sgt. Dave Heaphy said preventing drivers from crashing on campus can present its own problems.

“It’s a challenge when you have limited area for new routes, roads, signage; it needs to be clear, unambiguous,” Heaphy said. “You want to assist the motorist in making good decisions; combining their common sense of safe driving with a good driving environment.”

The enforcement arm involves campus police patrolling the campus at major roadways. UTAPS parking enforcers monitor the campus parking lots and structures for various parking violations. Heaphy said the expanded reach and cooperation between the two departments better enables officers to protect the campus while enforcing the laws.

He said enforcing speed limits and right-of-way laws on campus can be tricky when students make what they see are otherwise innocent mistakes in trying to get to classes on time, often with tragic results. Campus police issue traffic citations as a method for motivating drivers to follow the rules.

“There are people who, for one reason or another, either accidentally violate the law or intentionally because they are in a hurry.” Heaphy said. “You then wind up having crashes.”

The number of pedestrians and vehicles on campus often raises questions of safety when crossing the street to a parking structure or the main campus. A visible police presence, Heaphy said, helps to reduce instances of drivers making illegal turns to cut down on their commute time.

The campus police’s ultimate goal, he added, is to be more visible and accessible to students and faculty. An increase in police sightings on campus also makes people less likely to commit property crimes, which are one of the highest priorities for campus police. Car burglaries, in particular, also concern campus police.

“Initially, during big traffic periods, you’re looking at traffic enforcement; reduce crashes,” he said. “After that, get out in the parking structures, watch for the car burglars. If the criminals see you, they’re going to go somewhere else. We want to protect our students, our staff, the users of this campus.”

Ben Schilter can be reached at [email protected]