SAINT JOHN, NB - The volume of tickets issued has sharply risen since the formation of the Traffic Unit in Saint John two years ago.

Prior in 2007, the force issued 2,500 tickets, the following year that rose to 3,800 and this year to date 3,700 violators have been caught.

Sgt. Jeff LaFrance of the Traffic Unit delivered a presentation to the Police Commission last night.

He says the formation of the unit has changed driving habits in a few areas.

"When we started our program, Rothesay Avenue was a high concern, there was a lot of speeding and now it's dropped off the scale quite a bit, there's still speeders out there, but not to the magnitude there was two years ago," LaFrance says.

LaFrance says efforts to slow traffic in the Heatherway area in east Saint John have paid off as well, while city crews have installed speed humps.

He says drinking and driving remains the number one concern for the unit and the force.