Patrol post gets an electronic boost

Columbia County commissioners made a smart investment by using sales tax dollars to build a new Georgia State Patrol post.

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Now they are sweetening the pot by shifting a few thousand dollars of the investment to expand the scope of the post.

It's all about the radios state patrol officers use to communicate. The patrol currently has a radio room in each of its 48 highway patrol posts, but will consolidate those radio dispatch centers into just nine regional locations.

That means the Grovetown site will handle communications for 19 Georgia counties across middle Georgia. Ultimately that will be a savings for all Georgia taxpayers, while increasing the importance of Columbia County's new post.

When commissioners agreed to build the new site for the state, we disputed some who said increased traffic tickets would repay the investment. That's faulty reasoning.

But there's little doubt the investment itself is a good one for our community - and the regional radio room just kicks it up a notch.