If you think nobody’s watching, think again —if you’re driving on base, that is. And if you tend to spurn a lot of base traffic regulations, be extra careful. Because now, like it or not, your fellow motorist can go online to quantico.usmc.mil, select the third-party citation link on the left column and electronically submit a traffic violation report to the provost marshal office. It’s something anyone can do, as long as he or she is at least a staff noncommissioned officer.

The idea of the third-party citation is that if someone commits a traffic violation, however slight, and PMO is not there, someone who witnesses it can gather the vehicle’s pertinentinformation (the car’s make and model, license plate or Department of Defense decal number) and report it. Depending on the severity of the infraction, PMO will go to many lengths to find the owner of a vehicle reported for a traffic violation, including searching every vehicle on base, according to the description provided by the personfilling out a TVR.

So far PMO has not received any electronic TVRs. But this does not mean no one is using the new tool. It might be an indication that it is doing exactly what it’s supposed to: Deter would-betraffic violators from taking unsafe actions onthe road.

Potentially, the worst part is being reported and not even realizing it until a few days after you’ve committed your infraction, when you get a call from the base traffic court liaison to schedule your hearing. This is how just one indiscretion while driving can now ruin your whole day.

The only stipulation for people who go to the Quantico Web site to submit a TVR is they have to be willing to make a court appearance themselves to testify against whomever they reported. And whether you’re the plaintiff or the defendant, court is not something a lot of people enjoy.

Quantico is not the first base to have implemented the third-party citation. In both Camp Lejeune and Okinawa it has worked as a deterrent.

Of course, if you’re not a routine traffic offender, you have nothing to worry about, right? Being a Marine ‘‘24⁄7” also includes any time you spend behind the wheel. Conversely, it’s also yourresponsibility to hold others accountable for their actions. If you observe any traffic violations on base, you submit a report via the web at www.quantico.usmc.mil⁄OPM⁄?m=tv.

— Correspondent: lucas.lowe@usmc.mi