WEST ALLIS, Wis. — State Fair Police have a new tool helping them track speeders near State Fair Park.
The department purchased two radar speed limit signs using $13,500 in grant money from AAA's ACG Foundation.
The signs display a driver's speed as they drive past, but also log data for the department to access, alerting them to potentially dangerous stretches of street.
"We can actually more wisely deploy police officers to do speed enforcement techniques," said State Fair Police Chief Ken Pileggi. "Traffic safety is high priority."
In an effort to curb reckless and distracted driving, the department applied for and received the grant back in June.
Nick Jarmusz with AAA said speed is a critical factor when it comes to crashes near popular events like the Wisconsin State Fair.
"We just really want to make sure that everyone is just slowing down and taking it easy on those streets around the fairgrounds," said Jarmusz.
He said the chance of a pedestrian surviving a crash after being struck by a vehicle dramatically reduces the faster the car is going.
The chance of a pedestrian dying after being hit by a car going 25mph is about 10%, while the chance of a crash like that being deadly if the car is going 50mph is about 75%, Jarmusz said.
That means, if the new signs do their job and slow people down, they could potentially save lives.
"We were happy to fulfill that request because we know there is an awful lot of traffic around the state fair park year-round, not even just during the fair itself," said Jarmusz.
Data-driven policing that the State Fair Police Department hopes will help keep families safe.
"Speed kills, it hurts. Slow down. There's nothing worth driving so fast that you're driving recklessly and it puts people in peril," said Pileggi.
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