For more than two months, the St. Lucie County Sheriff's Office has conducted targeted traffic enforcement in areas across the county, resulting in "encouraging signs" in driver behavior, the agency stated Aug. 20.

Sheriff Richard Del Toro nine weeks ago "directed additional resources toward targeted traffic enforcement in areas throughout our county where speeding and dangerous driving have been a concern," a release states.

Sheriff's officials reported deputies issued 1,289 citations and 3,522 written warnings. They made 41 arrests following alleged "offenses discovered during traffic enforcement."

A nesting bald eagle in southern Indian River County on Tuesday, Dec. 26, 2023. Rather than do their own fishing, bald eagles often go after other creatures’ catches. Bald Eagles can live a long time. The oldest recorded bird in the wild was at least 38 years old when it was hit and killed by a car in New York in 2015, according to allaboutbirds.org. (CRYSTAL VANDER WEIT/TCPALM)
A nesting bald eagle in southern Indian River County on Tuesday, Dec. 26, 2023. Rather than do their own fishing, bald eagles often go after other creatures’ catches. Bald Eagles can live a long time. The oldest recorded bird in the wild was at least 38 years old when it was hit and killed by a car in New York in 2015, according to allaboutbirds.org. (CRYSTAL VANDER WEIT/TCPALM)
An American alligator is seen in Lake Okeechobee on June 11, 2026, in Martin County. Using data from Florida Fish and Wildlife and the state's Alligator Management Units (AMUs), in 2024, the estimated population of alligators in Lake Okeechobee was about 33,542. The lake is home to the highest number of alligators in Florida. (CRYSTAL VANDER WEIT/TCPALM)
An American alligator is seen in Lake Okeechobee on June 11, 2026, in Martin County. Using data from Florida Fish and Wildlife and the state's Alligator Management Units (AMUs), in 2024, the estimated population of alligators in Lake Okeechobee was about 33,542. The lake is home to the highest number of alligators in Florida. (CRYSTAL VANDER WEIT/TCPALM)
A bald eagle is released in a field near the Treasure Coast Wildlife Center's property in Palm City, Oct. 6, 2025, after four weeks of rehabilitation. On Sept. 4, the eagle was found on the ground at the FPL site on Glades Cut Off Road in St. Lucie County. The center believes she was concussed, and physical evaluations showed nothing of concern. (CRYSTAL VANDER WEIT/TCPALM)
A bald eagle is released in a field near the Treasure Coast Wildlife Center's property in Palm City, Oct. 6, 2025, after four weeks of rehabilitation. On Sept. 4, the eagle was found on the ground at the FPL site on Glades Cut Off Road in St. Lucie County. The center believes she was concussed, and physical evaluations showed nothing of concern. (CRYSTAL VANDER WEIT/TCPALM)
A gopher tortoise is seen in the Seabranch Preserve State Park on Thursday, Feb. 1, 2024, in Martin County. Listed as "threatened" in Florida by the federal Endangered Species Act, both gopher tortoises and their burrows are protected by law. (CRYSTAL VANDER WEIT/TCPALM)
A gopher tortoise is seen in the Seabranch Preserve State Park on Thursday, Feb. 1, 2024, in Martin County. Listed as "threatened" in Florida by the federal Endangered Species Act, both gopher tortoises and their burrows are protected by law. (CRYSTAL VANDER WEIT/TCPALM)
A great blue heron on Normandy Beach on Thursday Jan. 11, 2024, on Hutchinson Island in St. Lucie County. (CRYSTAL VANDER WEIT/TCPALM)
A great blue heron on Normandy Beach on Thursday Jan. 11, 2024, on Hutchinson Island in St. Lucie County. (CRYSTAL VANDER WEIT/TCPALM)
A great egret flies north from the Jensen Beach Causeway on Sunday, Feb. 23, 2025, in Martin County. (CRYSTAL VANDER WEIT/TCPALM)
A great egret flies north from the Jensen Beach Causeway on Sunday, Feb. 23, 2025, in Martin County. (CRYSTAL VANDER WEIT/TCPALM)
An American alligator sunbathes on Lake Okeechobee’s shoreline, June 11, 2026, in Martin County. Using data from Florida Fish and Wildlife and the state's Alligator Management Units (AMUs), in 2024, the estimated population of alligators in Lake Okeechobee was about 33,542. The lake is home to the highest number of alligators in Florida. (CRYSTAL VANDER WEIT/TCPALM)
An American alligator sunbathes on Lake Okeechobee’s shoreline, June 11, 2026, in Martin County. Using data from Florida Fish and Wildlife and the state's Alligator Management Units (AMUs), in 2024, the estimated population of alligators in Lake Okeechobee was about 33,542. The lake is home to the highest number of alligators in Florida. (CRYSTAL VANDER WEIT/TCPALM)
A gopher tortoise in Seabranch Preserve State Park on Wednesday, Sept. 18, 2024, in Martin County. (CRYSTAL VANDER WEIT/TCPALM)
A gopher tortoise in Seabranch Preserve State Park on Wednesday, Sept. 18, 2024, in Martin County. (CRYSTAL VANDER WEIT/TCPALM)
A tricolored heron is seen in western St. Lucie County, Dec. 11, 2025. (CRYSTAL VANDER WEIT/TCPALM)
A tricolored heron is seen in western St. Lucie County, Dec. 11, 2025. (CRYSTAL VANDER WEIT/TCPALM)
A pair of sandhill cranes give out bugling calls while they forage for food in a shallow marsh at Hawk’s Bluff Trail in Savannas Preserve State Park on Friday, April 2, 2021, in Jensen Beach. (CRYSTAL VANDER WEIT/TCPALM)
A pair of sandhill cranes give out bugling calls while they forage for food in a shallow marsh at Hawk’s Bluff Trail in Savannas Preserve State Park on Friday, April 2, 2021, in Jensen Beach. (CRYSTAL VANDER WEIT/TCPALM)
A cattle egret is seen with a frog in western St. Lucie County, Dec. 11, 2025. (CRYSTAL VANDER WEIT/TCPALM)
A cattle egret is seen with a frog in western St. Lucie County, Dec. 11, 2025. (CRYSTAL VANDER WEIT/TCPALM)
An alligator is seen in one of the reservoirs on the Scott Water Farm property Friday, Jan. 21. 2022, in Indian River County. This is the state's fourth and newest "water farm," and is split by Florida's Turnpike and the C-25 Canal, which ultimately leads into the Indian River Lagoon in Fort Pierce. The project will retain onsite rainfall and pump water from the C-25 Canal and store it on 7,600 acres of privately-owned land. The project was designed to reduce harmful estuary discharges and can store more than 29,000 acre-feet of water per year. "The (Indian River) lagoon doesn't need all this fresh water even when clean much less with nutrients like phosphorus and nitrogen," said H.M. Ridgely, the project manager of Scott Water Farm. "It's a tremendous amount of water that 's not going to the lagoon every year. We plan on not releasing any of it. It's going to come in here, it's going to percolate into the soil and it's going to disappear through evapotranspiration." (CRYSTAL VANDER WEIT/TCPALM)
An alligator is seen in one of the reservoirs on the Scott Water Farm property Friday, Jan. 21. 2022, in Indian River County. This is the state's fourth and newest "water farm," and is split by Florida's Turnpike and the C-25 Canal, which ultimately leads into the Indian River Lagoon in Fort Pierce. The project will retain onsite rainfall and pump water from the C-25 Canal and store it on 7,600 acres of privately-owned land. The project was designed to reduce harmful estuary discharges and can store more than 29,000 acre-feet of water per year. "The (Indian River) lagoon doesn't need all this fresh water even when clean much less with nutrients like phosphorus and nitrogen," said H.M. Ridgely, the project manager of Scott Water Farm. "It's a tremendous amount of water that 's not going to the lagoon every year. We plan on not releasing any of it. It's going to come in here, it's going to percolate into the soil and it's going to disappear through evapotranspiration." (CRYSTAL VANDER WEIT/TCPALM)
A gopher tortoise in Seabranch Preserve State Park on Wednesday, Sept. 18, 2024, in Martin County. (CRYSTAL VANDER WEIT/TCPALM)
A gopher tortoise in Seabranch Preserve State Park on Wednesday, Sept. 18, 2024, in Martin County. (CRYSTAL VANDER WEIT/TCPALM)
A bald eagle is released in a field near the Treasure Coast Wildlife Center's property in Palm City, Oct. 6, 2025, after four weeks of rehabilitation. On Sept. 4, the eagle was found on the ground at the FPL site on Glades Cut Off Road in St. Lucie County. The center believes she was concussed, and physical evaluations showed nothing of concern. (CRYSTAL VANDER WEIT/TCPALM)
A bald eagle is released in a field near the Treasure Coast Wildlife Center's property in Palm City, Oct. 6, 2025, after four weeks of rehabilitation. On Sept. 4, the eagle was found on the ground at the FPL site on Glades Cut Off Road in St. Lucie County. The center believes she was concussed, and physical evaluations showed nothing of concern. (CRYSTAL VANDER WEIT/TCPALM)
A great blue heron on Normandy Beach on Thursday Jan. 11, 2024, on Hutchinson Island in St. Lucie County. (CRYSTAL VANDER WEIT/TCPALM)
A great blue heron on Normandy Beach on Thursday Jan. 11, 2024, on Hutchinson Island in St. Lucie County. (CRYSTAL VANDER WEIT/TCPALM)
A tricolored heron is seen in western St. Lucie County, Dec. 11, 2025. (CRYSTAL VANDER WEIT/TCPALM)
A tricolored heron is seen in western St. Lucie County, Dec. 11, 2025. (CRYSTAL VANDER WEIT/TCPALM)
An alligator is seen in one of the reservoirs on the Scott Water Farm property Friday, Jan. 21. 2022, in Indian River County. (CRYSTAL VANDER WEIT/TCPALM)
An alligator is seen in one of the reservoirs on the Scott Water Farm property Friday, Jan. 21. 2022, in Indian River County. (CRYSTAL VANDER WEIT/TCPALM)
A gopher tortoise in Seabranch Preserve State Park on Wednesday, Sept. 18, 2024, in Martin County. (CRYSTAL VANDER WEIT/TCPALM)
A gopher tortoise in Seabranch Preserve State Park on Wednesday, Sept. 18, 2024, in Martin County. (CRYSTAL VANDER WEIT/TCPALM)
A pair of nesting bald eagles in southern Indian River County on Tuesday, Dec. 26, 2023. Bald eagles usually first breed at age 4 to 5 years, and may mate for life, according to audubon.org (CRYSTAL VANDER WEIT/TCPALM)
A pair of nesting bald eagles in southern Indian River County on Tuesday, Dec. 26, 2023. Bald eagles usually first breed at age 4 to 5 years, and may mate for life, according to audubon.org (CRYSTAL VANDER WEIT/TCPALM)
A great blue heron is seen in Lake Okeechobee on Thursday, Sept. 7, 2023, north of Clewiston. On this day, the lake water level stood at 15.34 feet. (CRYSTAL VANDER WEIT/TCPALM)
A great blue heron is seen in Lake Okeechobee on Thursday, Sept. 7, 2023, north of Clewiston. On this day, the lake water level stood at 15.34 feet. (CRYSTAL VANDER WEIT/TCPALM)
A cattle egret is seen with a frog in western St. Lucie County, Dec. 11, 2025. (CRYSTAL VANDER WEIT/TCPALM)
A cattle egret is seen with a frog in western St. Lucie County, Dec. 11, 2025. (CRYSTAL VANDER WEIT/TCPALM)
Children attending the Hobe Sound Nature Center's spring break camp meet and learn about the center's resident gopher tortoise, March 17, 2026. The five-day nature camp gives the children a chance to explore the wild, search for critters, meet the animal ambassadors and learn about Florida's ecosystems. (CRYSTAL VANDER WEIT/TCPALM)
Children attending the Hobe Sound Nature Center's spring break camp meet and learn about the center's resident gopher tortoise, March 17, 2026. The five-day nature camp gives the children a chance to explore the wild, search for critters, meet the animal ambassadors and learn about Florida's ecosystems. (CRYSTAL VANDER WEIT/TCPALM)

Investigators reported the percentage of written warnings and citations issued for drivers traveling greater than 20 mph over the speed limit decreased from 24 percent in the January to December 2025 time period to 18 percent in 2026 during the time period of January to Aug. 15.

"Speeding still occurs, but fewer of the speeding-related enforcement actions involve the highest speed violations," the sheriff's office stated. "That tells us our continued focus on enforcement, visibility, and education is making a difference."

Del Toro in the Aug. 20 statement reported he wanted to make St. Lucie County the safest county in Florida, something he also said during his campaign before being elected in 2024.

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He said roadway safety is part of accomplishing that goal.

"Our goal isn't to write more tickets," Del Toro stated. "Our goal is to prevent crashes, change dangerous driving behavior, and save lives."

Will Greenlee is a breaking news reporter for TCPalm. Follow Will on X @OffTheBeatTweet or reach him by phone at 772-267-7926. E-mail him at [email protected].

This article originally appeared on Treasure Coast Newspapers: Florida traffic enforcement yields driver behavior change, agency says