DALLAS — Street racing...Street takeovers...Whatever you've heard it referred to as - It's all wrong!
It's been a problem Texans have been dealing with in their neighborhoods for a while and more recently -- it's gotten worse.
Governor Abbott recently shared his plan to team up with the Department of Public safety to crack down on it statewide.
In a tweet, the governor said, "Texas is a law-and-order state and will not tolerate these reckless, coordinated criminal events."
In the attached statement to that tweet, the DPS director says the "street takeovers put the lives of Texans and Texas law enforcement officer at risk."
Last month, Austin police dealt with multiple "street takeovers" in one weekend. A video from one of those incidents shows a crowd pushing back a squad car and shooting fireworks at it.
In Dallas, DPD has been running its task force to control the problem since 2018.
The most recent numbers from a three-month period in 2021 show there were almost 1,500 traffic stops related to street racing, as well as 49 felony arrests and eight stolen vehicles recovered.
The city council tried to put a dent in the activity. It passed an ordinance in 2020 that made it illegal to be present in the planning of a racing event,
The ordinance also made it illegal to knowingly allow street racing and reckless driving exhibition on any premise you own or operate.
Despite that, the department is still dealing with the same issues three years later. as the governor's call to action demonstrates -- it's not just here in North Texas.
So what should you do if you see it happening?
DPS has a website called iWatchTexas where street takeovers can be reported.
If you do see it happening, your first call should be 911.
As always if you, have a traffic concern in your area, you can email us here.