Oklahoma State Highway Patrol Troopers can now drive as many miles as they want.
The state Department of Public Safety lifted the restriction Thursday that only allowed troopers to drive 100 miles per day.
The 100-mile limit was adopted in December due to a budget shortage.
“When your job is to patrol the roadways, it is very easy to get to 100 miles,” Trooper Dwight Durant said.
Durant said the limit made troopers reactive instead of proactive, meaning they would respond to crashes when they were called in to avoid exceeding the mileage limit, rather than patrolling to prevent crashes from happening.
“We’re not out there reducing the number of crashes...when we’re sitting on the side of the road or sitting at a headquarters somewhere waiting on the next crash to come in,” Durant said.
According to Durant, the new state budget for fiscal year 2018, signed by Gov. Mary Fallin Wednesday, allows troopers to resume normal patrol duties.
