Traffic incidents on the rise in Springfield

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (WAND) — The Springfield Police Department has responded to over 3,000 car accidents, which includes hit and runs, property damage accidents, and personal injury accidents.

The overall number of accidents has increased, as have the numbers or property damage and personal injury accidents.

"Our biggest complaint we get here at the police department is traffic with people speeding, accidents in intersections, or running red lights," said Sara Pickford, Deputy Chief of the Criminal Investigations Division at the Springfield Police Department. "We have certain officers that patrol high accident intersections looking for red light runners and distracted driving."

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Pickford said some of the most dangerous intersections are located on Dirksen Parkway, Clear Lake Avenue, Veterans Parkway, and Wabash Avenue. She said traffic tends to pick up during summertime, which can lead to more accidents.

The Illinois State Police say they see an increase in certain types of accidents over the summer as well. One of their primary concerns is construction zone safety.

"When you enter a construction zone, make sure that you reduce your speed to the posted construction zone speed limit," said Master Sergeant Christopher Watson with the Illinois State Police. "The other issue we have is a lot of distracted driving, people are not focusing completely on the road."

Both Pickford and Watson encouraged extra caution and defensive driving techniques. This includes looking both ways before going through an intersection even if the light is green, and paying special attention to people directly ahead of you on the road.

Pickford said the Springfield Police Department is going to start a new speeding initiative on Wednesday to crack down on people speeding through Springfield.