By Staff
Alabama state troopers are expecting heavy traffic statewide during the Labor Day weekend - the last major travel holiday of the warm-weather season.
On the heels of the Department of Public Safety's &#8220Take Back Our Highways” initiative, all available troopers will be on duty, working to ensure the safety of motorists through aggressive enforcement of the state's traffic laws.
Public Safety Director Col. J. Christopher Murphy said troopers will target those violations that often contribute to traffic crashes, such as speeding, driving while impaired, following too closely, improper passing and failure to signal. He said the increased trooper presence was made possible through the availability of overtime funding provided by the Alabama Department of Transportation and Alabama Department of Economic and Community Affairs.
Enforcement plans for the Labor Day period include checkpoints and special enforcement details, including saturation and line patrols in high-traffic areas. Murphy urged motorists do their part to ensure safe travel by buckling up on every trip, closely obeying speed limits and all other traffic laws, and practicing courtesy and patience on the roadways.
Troopers, along with local and county law enforcement and traffic safety agencies throughout Alabama, will also be targeting impaired drivers as part of the national safety enforcement blitz - &#8220Drunk Driving. Over the Limit. Under Arrest.” The enforcement and public awareness effort began last week and will continue through Labor Day, Sept. 3.
Troopers will focus patrols on heavily traveled roadways, including interstates and popular beach and vacation routes, in conjunction with Operation C.A.R.E. A cooperative effort by state police nationwide, C.A.R.E - Combined Accident Reduction Effort - seeks to promote traffic safety during holiday periods through enforcement and safety awareness.