IDOT Highway Watch Program  

Illinois Terrorism Task Force Honors Trucking Associations For Highway Watch Homeland Security Effort

More than 16,000 Illinois Trucking Assoc. and Midwest Trucking Assoc.
Drivers in IDOT-sponsored effort to keep Illinois and Nation’s roads safe
 

[DEC. 29, 2006]  SPRINGFIELD -- The Illinois Terrorism Task Force has recognized the outstanding efforts by the Illinois Trucking Association and the Midwest Trucking Association in training members to serve in the nationwide Highway Watch program, the homeland security effort that enlists transportation industry professionals to be on the lookout for suspicious activity on the nation’s roadways.

"Homeland security begins at home, and Highway Watch is a good example of the role that citizens can play in protecting our state and our country,” Mike Chamness, Chairman of the Illinois Terrorism Task Force, said in recognition of the efforts of the two trucking associations. “We must stay vigilant, and we are happy to have the trucking industry as a partner in that effort."

“Thanks to the efforts of the Illinois Trucking Association and the Midwest Trucking Association, we have thousands of extra eyes and ears out on our highways helping to protect the heartland of America,” said Illinois Department of Transportation (IDOT) Secretary Timothy W. Martin. “Truckers are the lifeblood of our economy and they are now also protecting lives through their participation in the Highway Watch program.”

Since the Illinois Highway Watch program was initiated by the Blagojevich Administration in 2004, more than 16,000 people have undergone Highway Watch training in the program overseen by IDOT and carried out by the two trucking associations.

"The acceptance of the Highway Watch program by the trucking industry is no surprise,” said George Billows, executive director of the Illinois Trucking Association. “To truck drivers, Highway Watch is about doing the right thing, being a good citizen, helping to protect the families, towns and cities of America. Truckers are very patriotic people. Whether it be 9-11, hurricane Katrina, an Amber Alert or being the eyes and ears of the highway, it is the drivers and the trucking industry that you can always count on to lend a helping hand."

“Illinois’ Highway Watch program was started through the cooperation of the trucking industry, law enforcement and state transportation officials,” said Don Schaefer, executive director of the Midwest Trucking Association. “The industry has worked as a partner to provide an extra set of eyes and ears for authorities on the state’s roadways.”
 
 Nationwide, more than 500,000 transportation professionals – including truckers, school bus drivers and state highway workers – call in tips as part of the Highway Watch program
 
 Highway Watch participants are trained to recognize potential safety and security threats. The Highway Watch effort seeks to prevent terrorists from using large vehicles with hazardous cargoes as weapons on our nation’s highways.
 
 Highway Watch training provides transportation professionals with observational tools and the ability to report safety and security concerns rapidly and accurately to law enforcement via a nationwide hotline. It utilizes the skills and experiences of America’s transportation professionals to help protect our nation’s critical infrastructure and the transportation of goods, services and people.
 
 The Illinois Highway Watch program was kicked off in March 2004 with a $200,000 grant from the Department of Homeland Security to the Illinois Trucking Association.

[News release]