×

State Police ‘Drive Sober’ campaign goes from today through Labor Day

New York State Police and local law enforcement say they will be out in force from now through Labor Day as part of the national “Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over” campaign to prevent drugged and drunk driving.

The national enforcement period begins Friday, Aug. 17 and runs through Labor Day, Monday, Sept. 3.

State Police say the last few weeks of summer through Labor Day weekend traditionally have heavy traffic volumes statewide as well as more alcohol consumption, accidents, serious injuries, fatalities.

Drivers can expect to see sobriety checkpoints and more troopers on major highways during the campaign, which is funded by the governor’s Traffic Safety Committee. Troopers will also watch for distracted or impaired drivers, vehicle occupants who are not properly buckled up and drivers violating the Move Over Law.

Troopers will use both marked State Police vehicles and unmarked Concealed Identity Traffic Enforcement vehicles. The CITE vehicles allow troopers to better observe distracted driving violations such as using handheld devices while driving.

Over Labor Day weekend 2017, State Police made 193 driving-while-intoxicated arrests and issued more than 21,900 tickets statewide.

Drunk driving killed 10,497 people in 2016, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. On average, one person is killed every 50 minutes in an alcohol-impaired driving crash.

NEWSLETTER

Today's breaking news and more in your inbox

I'm interested in (please check all that apply)
Are you a paying subscriber to the newspaper? *

Starting at $4.75/week.

Subscribe Today