SOUTH SAN FRANCISCO (BCN) — Traffic officers in South San Francisco handed out over 50 speeding citations Saturday in an effort to reduce speed related injuries or deaths.

Police said officers targeted roadways in the city that have the highest injury and fatality rates due to speed as well as Hillside Boulevard and EL Camino Real and combined cited 56 drivers.

Police said specially trained officers using lidar devices to check drivers speed allowed officers to target the fastest vehicles on the roadway.

The lidar is a highly accurate laser device that can differentiate between vehicles allowing officers to obtain an exact speed-reading, police said.

The one-day saturation patrol was one out of more than 12 more that will be completed throughout the next eight months in South San Francisco, according to police.

Police said funding for the program was granted by a grant from the California Office of Traffic Safety, through the National Highway Traffic Administration.