State Police Prepare for Thanksgiving Holiday Road Safety

With tens of thousands of travelers driving through Connecticut during the Thanksgiving weekend, State Police are ramping-up their plans to keep highways safe for everyone during the holiday rush. 

Beginning on November 25th at 12:01 a.m. and running through Nov. 29th at 11:59 p.m., Connecticut State Police will supplement its normal routine patrol personnel with additional Troopers throughout the long Thanksgiving holiday weekend. 

Across the state, Troopers will patrol roads and highways across Connecticut, and will focus on aggressive drivers, unsafe drivers, and drunk drivers.

Troopers are committed to reducing crashes through preventative enforcement initiatives such as roving DUI patrols, and will also be looking for violators who cause accidents on Connecticut roads and highways.  

Every effort to reduce accidents will be taken, however Connecticut residents are asked to be a part of the public safety solution by obeying traffic laws:  don’t follow too close, drive the speed limit, stay off your cell phone while driving and, if you drink, then please do not drive.  

Residents should remind all young people, especially college students returning home the first time this semester, of the laws regarding alcohol consumption and drinking and driving. 

Uniformed Troopers will use traditional and non-traditional patrol cars to observe traffic and issue tickets to reckless and distracted drivers.  

A reminder to all drivers: anyone who is consuming alcohol should never get behind the wheel. If you see a suspected drunk driver, call 911 as this is a true emergency.

2014 Thanksgiving Statistics: 

SPEEDING: Arrests: 1,106

SEAT BELT VIOLATIONS: Arrests: 314

OTHER HAZARDOUS MOVING VIOLATIONS: Arrests:  3,538

(including unsafe lane change, following too close, cell phone usage, failure to signal, etc.)

DUI ARRESTS:  52

ACCIDENTS INVESTIGATED: 934; With Injury: 97; Fatals: 1

Trooper First Class Kelly Grant

Trooper Tyler Weerden

Connecticut State Police

Public Information Office

1111 Country Club Rd.

Middletown, Ct. 06457