UPDATED Saturday, December 13, 2008 --- 6:20 p.m.

Some of the most dangerous roads in our area are being targeted by police hoping to stop deadly accidents.

This is no big city problem.

There are no traffic jams, no traffic lights and not a whole lot of travel.

Township roads are becoming one of law enforcements biggest problems.

Dane County Sheriff's Deputy Todd Huppert says, "I've seen a number of serious injury and fatality crashes."

The Dane County Sheriff's Department is targeting 5 Townships identified by the Wisconsin Department of Transportation for their high numbers alcohol and speed related crashes.

Huppert says, "The township roads in general are smaller roads. There's no room for error on these roads."

Driving at all above the speed limit can be especially dangerous with bad road conditions and that's why there is zero tolerance in this effort.

Huppert says, "It's just ridiculous speeds that we're seeing out here."

Now there are even more eyes on the road, making sure those heavy on the gas are finding themselves light in the wallet, realizing the problems their speed can create.

But for this deputy the effort isn't about writing tickets it's about overcoming the attitude that speed isn't a problem and that officers should be spending their time worrying about other crimes.

Huppert says, "You're going to have those people that never learn. We have so many crashes that are speed related."

Crashes that don't have to happen on a busy interstate to cause deadly problems.

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Posted Thursday, December 11, 2008 --- 11:30 a.m.

From Dane County Sheriff's Office:

Madison, WI. December 11, 2008 – On Saturday, December 13th, the Dane County Sheriff’s Office will hold the first deployment of a special speed enforcement grant focusing on five Dane County townships.

The Wisconsin Department of Transportation (WI DOT) has designated the townships of Albion, Christiana, Dunn, Vienna, and Windsor, as the target areas for speed enforcement. Three additional deputies will be working at varying hours on Saturday in all of the townships mentioned. The townships were designated by WI DOT based on alcohol and speed related crash data from the three previous years. Factors such as population density and crashes per capita were also weighed. The Dane County Sheriff’s Office received $22,000 for the project, which will run through September of 2009.

According to the WI DOT, in 2007 there were 23,018 speed related crashes on Wisconsin highways, and 251 people died as a result. Deputies working this project have been directed to have a zero tolerance for violations, including seatbelts.