PORT ORCHARD — The Washington State Patrol (WSP), Bremerton Police Department, Port Orchard Police Department and the Kitsap County Sheriff’s Office (KCSO) are combining efforts for a fourth “High Visibility Enforcement” (HIVE) patrol on Thursday, March 12.

The day-long HIVE patrol will focus on State Route 16 near Gorst and State Route 160 (Sedgwick Road) in Port Orchard. The mission is to prevent injury, serious injury and fatality collisions.

HIVE patrol locations and times are dictated by data collected by the WSP. Collision data collected over the past six years identifies the five-mile radius near Gorst as a high volume area, accounting for nearly 35 percent of collisions investigated by WSP troopers in Kitsap County. Twenty-five percent of collisions reported in that area results in injuries, serious injuries or fatalities.

The HIVE patrols last the entire day, with focused efforts during peak collision times.

HIVE patrols use an all-crimes approach, with a focus on collision-causing violations including speed, following distance, impaired driving, distracted driving and aggressive driving behaviors, according to WSP spokeswoman Trooper Chelsea Hodgson.

The goal is to conduct 24 HIVE patrols throughout Kitsap County by the end of 2020, Hodgson said. Future scheduled HIVE patrols will be on March 26 (SR 3), April 9 (SR 303 and SR 304) and April 23 (SR 160 and SR 16).