Cleveland police detail how they'll use street milling to help stop illegal street takeovers

Cleveland police on Thursday announced their "next step" to help quell the rise of illegal street takeovers throughout the city, and it involves a little-known tactic known as "street milling."

According to the Cleveland Division of Police, street milling involves altering roads by using a machine to create grooves in busy intersections and make the driving surface rough and uneven for cars. This will make it harder for vehicles to perform stunts in high-traffic areas, much like the ones that helped shut down more than a dozen streets around Cleveland late last month, including the Innerbelt Bridge. Similar incidents have previously occurred in places like Playhouse Square and Ohio City, among others.

As part of its Street Take Over Task Force, the police department says it has worked with the Cleveland Division of Streets to launch a pilot program for street milling. While a full list of roads to be altered has not been released, officials did share photos from Lee Road and Harvard Avenue, where the middle of the four-way intersection has been grooved into a "checkerboard" style. Lee and Harvard was one of the areas taken over by unruly drivers on Sept. 28.

"Street takeovers are dangerous not only to those participating, but also for the general public in the area," Cleveland Police Chief Annie Todd said in a statement.

Since the takeovers, authorities have made multiple arrests and towed a number of cars believed to be involved. As for the street milling program, police say they "will assess these public areas and make adjustments if necessary."

Mitti Hicks reports: https://www.wkyc.com/article/news/loc... --

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