DES MOINES, Iowa (AP)  Iowa traffic safety officials are stepping up enforcement of driving violations later this week.

The Iowa Governor's Traffic Safety Bureau says about 250 law enforcement agencies around the state will be on the roads from Thursday through Sunday for a special traffic enforcement program. They'll be looking for drunken drivers, those not wearing seat-belts, and other traffic violations.

Last year the March safety enforcement effort resulted in more than 18,000 traffic citations and warnings.

The bureau says a record number of traffic fatalities in January and February show a need for additional education and enforcement to change driver behavior.

The bureau says 59 people died on Iowa's roads in the first two months of the year. About a third had not worn seat-belts.