Operation Southern Slow Down is over, and the results of the anti-speeding campaign suggest either driving behavior is changing or enforcement is slowing.
This year, under 3,000 speeding tickets were issued to Florida drivers by the Florida Highway Patrol — roughly a 60% decrease from last year’s campaign, which resulted in more than 7,000 tickets, as reported by the Palm Beach Post.
The total number of tickets issued may be far more when final tallies come in. It’s not clear how many tickets were issued by local police and sheriff’s offices, which participate in the crackdown.
Across the state, troopers issued 2,714 speeding citations, 117 aggressive driving citations, 88 DUI citations and 29 seatbelt citations, according to 2026 data provided by the Florida Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles.
The annual statewide campaign ran through July 13-18 this year, bringing an increased law enforcement presence to the streets in an effort to reduce “speed-related crashes and fatalities on interstates and state highways.”
Law enforcement and transportation agencies across the southeastern United States also participated in the push, with Florida, Alabama, Georgia, South Carolina and Tennessee all banding together to crack down on speeders.
FHP’s Troop D, which covers counties like Brevard and Orange along the Interstate 4 corridor, issued nearly 600 of the tickets, and Troop K, which patrols the 450-mile Florida Turnpike highway system, issued nearly 400.
Counties like Hillsborough, Pinellas and Polk were among the region that saw the most DUIs. Troop C that monitors these counties and others issued 25 DUI citations.
The most aggressive driving citations, however, were in handed out in South Florida. Troop E, which is responsible for patrolling Miami-Dade and Monroe counties, issued 23 aggressive driving citations.
How many speeding tickets were issued in my county?
Over the course of the week, 2,714 speeding citations and 1,640 warnings were issued to drivers across the state by FHP. Troopers gave the most tickets to central Florida drivers, who received 594 citations during the campaign.
Here’s a regional breakdown of the numbers:
Troop A: Holmes, Washington, Bay, Jackson, Calhoun, Gulf, Escambia, Santa Rosa, Okaloosa and Walton counties
Troop B: Columbia, Suwannee, Hamilton, Alachua, Dixie, Gilchrist, Levy, Lafayette and Marion counties
Troop C: Sumter, Citrus, Hernando, Hillsborough, Polk, Pasco and Pinellas counties
Troop D: Orange, Osceola, Lake, Seminole, Brevard and Volusia counties
Troop E: Miami-Dade and Monroe counties
Troop F: Charlotte, Collier, Glades, Hendry, Lee, Desoto, Hardee, Highlands, Manatee and Sarasota Counties
Troop G: Baker, Bradford, Clay, Duval, Flagler, Nassau, Putnam, St. Johns and Union counties
Troop H: Leon, Gadsden, Jefferson, Madison, Taylor, Wakulla, Liberty and Franklin counties
Troop I: Oversees Florida’s northern region, encompassing Troops A, B, G, and H
Troop J: Oversees Florida’s southern region encompassing Troops C, D, E, F and L
Troop K: The Florida Turnpike
Troop L: Broward, Palm Beach, Martin, St. Lucie, Indian River and Okeechobee counties
Troop Q: Troopers assigned to Tallahassee headquarters
Elena Barrera can be reached at ebarrera@tallahassee.com. Follow her on X: @elenabarreraaa.
This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: Operation Southern Slow Down sees nearly 3,000 Florida speeding tickets
Reporting by Elena Barrera, Tallahassee Democrat / Tallahassee Democrat
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By Elena Barrera, Tallahassee Democrat | USA TODAY Network
