The holiday weekend is one of the busiest periods for motorists in IL.
Advertisement
In addition to getting impaired drivers off the street, Yuma police officers will also be actively enforcing traffic laws and raising public awareness about the dangers of impaired driving in an effort to save more lives on our roadways.
A news release from state police headquarters in Baton Rouge says drivers can expect “an increased law enforcement presence” on state highways. A driver traveling at a faster speed will cover more ground and have less time to react to a road hazard. The ISP will be monitoring speed on IL roads, so motorists are asked to watch their speed this holiday weekend.
The extra patrols are funded through the federal government, and is part of the “Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over”, campaign which began August 15 and will continue through Monday.
According to PennDOT, 315 alcohol-related crashes with 13 fatalities and 106 drug-related crashes with five fatalities occurred on state highways during last year’s Labor Day holiday time period. Officers will be targeting violators for aggressive and distracted driving offenses, OVI related violations and seat belt usage. The ISP will be on the lookout for those driving distracted this holiday weekend, and advises all drivers to keep their eyes on the road, not their phone. Labor Day is also expected to be a heavy traffic day with peak travel time being from 11 a.m.to 7 p.m.
“What we look for is primarily the impaired intoxicated driver, the road rage incident driver and people who are not paying attention to work zones”, said Sgt. Myers. “Please exercise care and caution while traveling by obeying the speed limit, using your seat belt, avoiding distracted driving and never driving while under the influence”. Regardless if you’re traveling across town or across the state, be sure to buckle up.
Advertisement
During the 2014 Labor Day weekend 40 percent of traffic fatalities involved drunk driving, Flowers said.
