The holiday season brings parties, family gatherings, and more people on the road, but CHP reports a dangerous spike in impaired driving, especially between Thanksgiving and New Year’s.
“During the holiday season, we get an increase in commuters. We have people going out shopping, looking for gifts, traveling to see family, and going to Christmas parties,” said Carlos Burgos Lopez, CHP Public Relations Officer.
“We have a higher increase of commuters out on the road. With more people on the road, we tend to see higher number of crashes respond to a higher number of crashes respond to a higher number of DUI-related incidents where someone might be called in as a DUI driver or have been involved in a crash,” said Burgos Lopez.
To keep the road safe, CHP is increasing patrols across Santa Clarita. Officers are watching for swerving, speeding and other signs of impairment, and they say even a small amount of alcohol can slow reaction time.
“We schedule more officers to be out on the road just to deal with the higher number of commuters that we’re going to have traveling,” said Burgos Lopez.
“We do have an increase in DUI arrests, because people are having the Christmas parties, or they fail to make a plan, or maybe their plans fall through, and they get behind the wheel. Ultimately, they either are involved in a crash or are stopped by one of us and ultimately are arrested for DUI.”
Officers say you should be stopping if you’ve had anything to drink during the holiday season, many drivers think they’re okay to drive, and that decision can turn deadly.
They say, if you’re unsure, don’t even bother starting the engine. The message is simple. One bad choice behind the wheel can change someone’s life forever.
With Christmas and New Year’s approaching, officers say they’ll stay on alert, and hope drivers will do the same.
