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“Thanksgiving kicks off the busiest travel season of the year, and we want everyone to reach their friends and loved ones safely,” Hochul said. “I urge drivers to stay alert, stay sober, and move over when you see vehicles stopped on the side of the road.”
In response, New York State officials are ramping up efforts to secure roads during Thanksgiving week, a peak time for travel and heightened risk of impaired driving incidents.
During the 2023 Thanksgiving holiday, law enforcement officers arrested 1,342 drivers for DWI and issued 7,656 speeding tickets and 970 tickets for distracted driving.
This year, enhanced police patrols will focus on curtailing reckless and impaired driving, with additional checkpoints and the deployment of Concealed Identity Traffic Enforcement vehicles to monitor compliance with driving laws.
Hochul said the average drinking and driving arrest costs up to $10,000. Arrested drunk and drugged drivers face the loss of their driver’s license, higher insurance rates, and dozens of unanticipated expenses from attorney fees, fines, car towing and repairs, and lost time at work.
The initiative, supported by the Governor’s Traffic Safety Committee, also emphasizes compliance with the Move Over Law and aims to reduce distractions by promoting designated text stops for mobile communications.
All text stops will remain open, providing locations where drivers can safely and conveniently use their phones and other mobile devices for calling, texting, navigating, and accessing mobile apps.
In addition, temporary lane closures will be suspended to improve traffic flow, but drivers are reminded to respect ongoing emergency and maintenance operations by adhering to updated Move Over laws.
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