Pennsylvania State Police are beefing up patrols over the upcoming holidays.
In advance of what is expected to be two very busy holiday driving periods, State Police announced that they will step up patrol efforts to reduce reckless and impaired driving over the Christmas driving period. They will start this Sunday, and go through Christmas Day, and over the New Year’s driving period, which runs from December 30th to January 1st.
The patrol efforts will focus on DUI and seat belt violations. The National Highway Traffic and Safety Administration said that a DUI arrest can cost a person $10,000 in attorney fees, on top of fines and court costs. A DUI arrest also means lost
time at work, higher car insurance rates, car towing and repair fees, and other costs.
Across the state last year at Christmas, troopers investigated 529 crashes. Of those crashes, 60 were alcohol-related, five people were killed and another 102 were injured. Troopers also made 243 DUI-related arrests last year over the Christmas driving period, and issued over 1,200 speeding tickets.
