State Troopers and Officers Encourage Motorists to Exercise Safe Driving Habits this Christmas and New Year’s

Georgia State Patrol (GSP) Troopers and Motor Carrier Compliance (MCCD) Officers encourage motorists to exercise safe driving habits during the Christmas and New Year’s holiday travel periods.  In an effort to reduce the number of crashes and fatalities on Georgia roadways, State troopers and MCCD officers will be on high visibility patrols on interstates and state roads.

The Christmas travel period starts Tuesday, December 24, at 6 p.m., and ends Thursday, December 26, at 11:59 p.m. The New Year’s holiday travel period gets underway Monday, December 30, at 6:00 p.m., and ends at 11:59 p.m., on Wednesday, January 1, 2025. Both travel periods are 54 hours long.

“It is still the primary focus and commitment of State Troopers and Officers to focus on motorists who break state traffic laws and exercise bad driving habits that could potentially cause serious injuries or fatal crashes. We encourage all motorists to make safety their top priority when traveling on Georgia’s roadways,” said Colonel Billy Hitchens, Commissioner of the Department of Public Safety (DPS).

Last year, the 2023 Christmas holiday travel period resulted in 16 fatalities statewide. GSP investigated 589 crashes that resulted in nearly 335 injuries and 11 fatalities. During the 2023-24 New Year’s holiday travel period there were nine statewide fatalities. GSP investigated 317 crashes that resulted in approximately 177 injuries and three fatalities.

If you plan to include alcohol consumption in your holiday celebrations, make sure to plan for a sober designated driver by contacting a taxi, rideshare, friend, or family member to help you get home safely.  Make these decisions before you get into the holiday spirit.

“This is a festive time of the year! We want everyone to drive sober, stay focused, obey the laws and enjoy this holiday season with family and friends. Always have a plan to have a sober driver to help make our roads safer for everyone. If you are caught driving impaired, you will be arrested,” added Colonel Hitchens.

AAA says nearly 90% of holiday travelers will be driving to their destinations, making it the most popular way to travel. 107 million people are expected to travel by car, and while that number is 2.5 million higher than last year, it is shy of 2019’s record of 108 million.

Best and Worst Travel Times to Travel by Car

Source: INRIX, a provider of transportation analytics and insights.

AAA also suggests the following driving tips:

Follow Posted Speed Limits: While it is tempting to speed to save time, the facts do not support it. Even minor increases in speed can make crashes deadly.

• Driving 80 mph instead of 75 mph over 100 miles saves only 5 minutes, hardly worth the risk.
• Speeding may feel faster but often leads to tragedy.

Drive Only When Alert and Refreshed: Driving on 4-5 hours of sleep is as dangerous as driving with a 0.08 BAC (legal intoxication). Less than 4 hours of sleep? The risk doubles.

• Travel during hours you are normally awake and avoid overnight drives.
• Steer clear of heavy meals, drowsy medications, and alcohol.
• For long trips, take breaks every 2 hours or 100 miles. Use these breaks to switch drivers if possible, or park at a safe location and nap for 20-30 minutes to recharge.

Slow Down, Move Over: A roadside worker is killed every other week in the U.S. To help prevent these tragedies, AAA asks drives to Slow Down, Move Over.

• When you see an emergency responder on the side of the road assisting a stranded driver, reduce your speed.
• If possible, change lanes to give those crews room to do their jobs safely.
• All 50 states and the District of Columbia have Move Over laws in place.

In addition to enforcing traffic laws, Troopers and Officers caution drivers to avoid becoming a distracted driver. The most important thing is to stay focused on where you are going and the drivers around you so that crashes do not ruin your Christmas or New Year’s festivities. Also, remember to obey the posted speed limits; wear seatbelts and utilize the appropriate child safety restraints for children under 8; and be aware of aggressive drivers and/or impaired drivers and report them to 911 or *GSP while on Georgia’s roads.

During the holiday period, an updated traffic fatality count will be published on the Department of Public Safety’s X page: https://x.com/ga_dps.