What Does the New TACT Initiative Mean to You?

Starting on October 1, the Pennsylvania Police Department and the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation will be implementing a new Ticket Aggressive Cars and Trucks Initiative (TACT). TACT will target and punish unsafe drivers along a 33-mile stretch of Interstate 81 highway between Cumberland County and Dauphin County in hopes of reducing the number of car and truck accidents that have been seen along this road.

The program will include highway billboards and brochures to increase driver knowledge of sharing the roads with trucks in addition to a greater police presence in the area, such as marked squad cars, unmarked squad cars, and airplanes.

What does the TACT initiative mean for you?

In general, it means that to avoid an expensive ticket and higher insurance costs, you should drive more carefully along I-81 and around commercial trucks. You shouldn't receive a ticket if you

• Avoid speeding, regardless of how fast the flow of traffic is around you
• Avoid risky lane changes and use your turn signals
• Don't follow too closely, especially when behind a big rig or truck
• Drive defensively and be aware of the vehicles around you

If you are unfamiliar with how to share the road with trucks, educate yourself on their dangers. Remember that they have large blind spots due to the length of their vehicles and may not see you beside or behind them. Remember that they weigh much more and are harder to slow down or turn.

Although more police on the roads might annoy drivers, please remember that they are saving lives, preventing injuries, and protecting you. This TACT initiative may save the life of you or someone you love - and you may never realize it. Hopefully, it will help keep dangerous drivers in check and law-breaking trucks off of our roads.