DATE: Thursday, May 29, 1997                TAG: 9705290002

SECTION: LOCAL                   PAGE: B10  EDITION: FINAL 

TYPE: Editorial 

                                            LENGTH:   48 lines

REST AREAS MAKE THEM SAFE PLANS TO HEIGHTEN SECURITY DO NOT GO FAR ENOUGH.

Just as Virginia's interstates are about to be clogged with summer tourists, Gov. George F. Allen has announced plans to spend $700,000 beefing up security at four rest stops along I-95 and I-81.

Not a minute too soon, either.

Tourism is big business in Virginia, and it is imperative that travelers feel safe when they use the facilities at the state-owned rest areas. Many of these comfort stations are located along secluded stretches of highway - the perfect setting for a criminal with larceny or murder in mind.

In fact, two murders and several armed robberies at rest areas in the past six months have left many drivers unwilling to jeopardize the lives and safety of their family members by stopping.

This rash of rest-area crime began in December when a man was murdered at the Dale City rest stop on I-95. Another driver was killed at a rest area outside of Blacksburg last month. There were also armed robberies at the Ladysmith rest area in January and at one in Greenville County in March.

Allen's plan to secure only those four rest areas does not go far enough, however. The governor has turned his attention to the areas that have already been scenes of violence in recent months. But there is no reason to believe that thugs will confine their criminal acts to these rest areas. In fact, installing security at rest areas after a crime has taken place is like chasing a horse with a barn door.

Jerry Kilgore, a candidate for the Republican nomination for attorney general, has a different solution: He has suggested private development of Virginia's 41 rest areas, presumably by fast-food franchises and gas stations.

Kilgore's proposal could impact unfavorably on businesses that have sprouted around interstate exits, however. And it is questionable whether the presence of private businesses at rest areas would reduce the incidence of crime. In fact, the presence of workers and cash registers at isolated sites might make them more tempting targets for criminals than for motorists.

The commonwealth of Virginia built the picturesque rest areas that dot the interstate system, and the state should make them as safe as possible by installing surveillance cameras at all rest areas, and guards where feasible. The Allen administration has said that new state police barracks ought to be built at rest areas - a terrific idea.

It is essential that motorists be able to use Virginia's rest areas without fearing for their lives.

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