‘D-Zone’ Patrol Finds Variety Of Violations

Turning onto Division Street, the state trooper glanced at the license plate of a GMC Jimmy waiting to turn left near Hawthorne Road.

Bingo. The patrol car’s lighted flashed on.

The GMC driver was pulled over for not having current license tags.

Just another night in the “D-Zone.”

For Trooper Terry Van Weerdhuizen, patrolling Division Street means keeping an eye out for everything from broken taillights to drunken drivers and speeders.

Friday night, Van Weerdhuizen stopped one driver pushing 87 mph.

“They’re all in a hurry to get nowhere,” Van Weerdhuizen said.

Using radar, Van Weerdhuizen timed another car near the North Division Y.

The Oregon driver with three mountain bikes strapped to his trunk was clocked at 67 mph. The speed limit is 40 mph.

State troopers, county sheriff’s deputies and city police are spending more and more time on Division this year as part of a special effort to reduce accidents and persuade drivers to slow down. The emphasis area, called the D-Zone, stretches from Interstate 90 to the Division Y and then follows the Newport Highway to Mount Spokane Park Drive.

The majority of accidents on Division, like other state highways, occur on dry pavement and involve cars going too fast or following too closely, according to the Department of Transportation.

On Friday night, Van Weerdhuizen ticketed a woman who was following his vehicle too closely near Kmart. That driver was not wearing a seat belt, so an additional ticket was also issued.

“This is going to be a fight; she’s not going to be happy,” Van Weerdhuizen said.

He also stopped a pink station wagon with an expired license tag in front of the Red Robin restaurant. The driver didn’t have insurance. Both citations totaled of $627.

Van Weerdhuizen also investigated an accident at Wedgewood and Foxpoint Drive, off Country Homes Boulevard.

Just another night in the D-Zone.

, DataTimes