PRINCE WILLIAM COUNTY, Va. — U.S. 15 in Virginia is a popular north-south route for travelers hoping to sidestep the state’s busy Interstate 95 corridor. The road runs from the North Carolina border connecting towns like Haymarket, Warrenton, and Leesburg. Ultimately it links South Carolina to New York, and this weekend police from all six jurisdictions in which the highway traverses will increase patrols
on U.S. 15 in an effort to save lives.
Between midnight Friday through Sunday, police from six agencies including Virginia State Police, will be out conducting sobriety checkpoints, saturation patrols as well as other law enforcement duties in an effort to slow drivers and combat criminal behavior along this heavily traveled, non-interstate highway.
The enforcement efforts marks the first time police in all six states in which U.S. 15 is located have worked together on a major enforcement task like this. Last year, Maryland, Pennsylvania, and Virginia authorities launched the first such joint operation to patrol the highway and netted 509 speeders and 16 reckless drivers, according to Virginia State Police. In addition, seven drunken drivers in were arrested in Virginia and Maryland, and a total of 24 felony arrests to include two drug arrests were made.
Crashes are up 23 percent over 2011 along Virginia’s 230-mile stretch of U.S. 15, police said. There were nearly 400 crashes along the highway in Virginia last year, up from 2011’s 318 crashes. Five of the crashes in 2012 were fatal, said police.
U.S. 15 in Virginia alternates between a 2-lane and 4-lane road configuration. In Fauquier and Prince William counties, a portion of the roadway is shared with U.S. 29 before splitting off north toward Haymarket and Loudoun County.
