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State Police and DMV Announce Crack Down on Impaired
and Reckless Driving This Memorial Day Weekend
Published: May 25, 2023 at 01:45
p.m.
By: Press Release from New York State Police
State Police and
DMV announce crack down on impaired and reckless driving this Memorial Day weekend
25 May 2023
NEW YORK STATE
POLICE
Steven A. Nigrelli
Acting
Superintendent
PRESS RELEASE
The New York
State Police will increase patrols to combat drunk, impaired, and reckless
driving throughout this Memorial Day weekend. The special enforcement
period starts on Friday, May 26, 2023, and runs through Tuesday, May 30,
2023. Memorial Day is one of the busiest travel holidays of the year and
police will be out in force to remove impaired and reckless drivers from
our highways.
New York State
Police Acting Superintendent Steven A. Nigrelli
said, “On Memorial Day, we take time to honor the brave men and
women who died in service to our county, remembering the sacrifice they
made for all of us. If your Memorial Day weekend celebrations include
alcohol, remember to make safety your top priority and arrange for a safe
ride home. Wear your seat belt, remain alert and above all, drive sober.
Troopers will be highly visible this weekend and will have zero tolerance
for impaired and reckless drivers.”
New York State
Department of Motor Vehicles Commissioner and Governor’s Traffic Safety
Committee Chair Mark J.F. Schroeder said, “I thank and commend New
York State Police and all our other law enforcement agencies for their
commitment to keeping our roadways as safe as possible. There will be a lot
of traffic on the road during Memorial Day weekend as the summer travel
season begins. If you are going to be drinking or using drugs, please do
not drive. Have a plan to designate a driver or arrange for a ride. We want
everyone to enjoy a safe and happy holiday weekend, without having their
memories marred by a needless tragedy.”
Drivers can
expect to see sobriety checkpoints and increased patrols by State Police
and local law enforcement agencies during this holiday weekend. Troopers
will be using both marked State Police vehicles and Concealed Identity
Traffic Enforcement (CITE) vehicles as part of this crackdown to more
easily identify motorists who are violating the law. CITE vehicles allow
the Trooper to better observe driving violations. These vehicles
blend in with everyday traffic but are unmistakable as emergency vehicles
once the emergency lighting is activated.
According to the
Institute for Traffic Safety Management and Research (ITSMR) at the
University at Albany, 237 people were killed and 4,394 were injured in
drunk driving related crashes in 2022. Another 237 people were killed in
drug-related crashes.
This initiative
is partially funded by the Governor’s Traffic Safety Committee (GTSC). The
GTSC and the New York State STOP-DWI Foundation remind motorists that
their “Have a Plan” mobile
app is available for Apple, Droid and
Windows smartphones. The app enables New Yorkers to locate and call a taxi
service and program a designated driver list. It also provides information
on DWI laws and penalties, and a way to even report a suspected impaired
driver.
On Memorial Day
weekend in 2022, Troopers arrested 213 people for driving while impaired,
issued 13,688 total tickets, and investigated 808 crashes, which resulted
in four fatalities.
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