Busy Holiday Weekend Expected
Tony Potts
09-01-2010
The Georgia State Patrol is reminding drivers not to get behind
the wheel impaired during the upcoming Labor Day holiday travel
period. The 78-hour Labor Day holiday travel period begins
Friday, September 3 at 6 p.m. and ends at midnight Labor Day.
During the 2009 Labor Day holiday period, there were 1,917
traffic crashes reported that resulted in 867 injuries and 15
traffic deaths in Georgia.
Colonel Bill Hitchens, Commissioner of the Georgia Department of
Public Safety, said increased patrols for impaired drivers will
be conducted during the holiday period. `Last year there were
no alcohol-related traffic deaths reported over the Labor Day
holiday period,` he said, `and one of the deaths involved a
drug-impaired driver.`
Colonel Hitchens said a variety of events scheduled during the
Labor Day holiday period will increase motor vehicle travel in
Georgia, including high school football games across the state,
college games on Saturday, and a full series of events at
Atlanta Motor Speedway throughout the weekend.
The highest number of traffic deaths recorded over a Labor Day
holiday period was in 1968 when 35 traffic deaths were reported,
and the lowest occurred in 1939 and 1995 with seven fatalities.
Over the last seven years, the Georgia Department of
Transportation reports 13,897 total crashes during the Labor Day
holiday period with a total of 6,700 injuries and 120 traffic
deaths.
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