The start of the holiday travel season has not started off too well for drivers in Pennsylvania. The Thanksgiving holiday weekend around Pennsylvania saw an increase in accidents and DUI’s this year compared to last.
While Thanksgiving is known for being one of the busiest travel times of the year, the upcoming holidays allow for more chances of people being on the roads and more opportunities of people driving impaired. This time of year, when students are driving back home from school and family, co-workers and friends are getting together for parties, any night of the week can be have congested roadways and possible drunk drivers. With increased motorists and opportunities to partake in festive celebrations, it is important to be cognizant of the dangers lurking out on the roads.
Thanksgiving 2018 by the numbers
Over the Thanksgiving holiday weekend that stretches from the Wednesday prior to Thanksgiving until the Sunday evening after, Pennsylvania state troopers responded to 1,116 crashes. This was a nearly 14 percent increase from the year before. From these crashes, there were 213 injuries and four people died. Eighty of the crashes that troopers responded to were alcohol related, though none of the fatalities from that weekend were the cause of drunk driving. However, though they were not part of any crashes, there was 637 DUI arrests which was eight more than in 2017.
Here are more numbers from Thanksgiving weekend in comparison from the year before. These numbers only indicate what was reported from state officers, local police department numbers are not included.
Total crashes
2018: 1,116
2017: 981
Fatalities
2018: 4
2017: 4
Crash injuries
2018: 213
2017: 209
Speeding tickets
2018: 13,863
2017: 15,912
Seat belt citations
2018: 1,256
2017: 1,125
Miscellaneous Citations
2018: 18,320
2017: 15,211
If this holiday season continues like it has started, you can expect dangerous conditions on the roads and an increased presence of law enforcement. When you are driving this holiday season anywhere around Pennsylvania, it will be a good idea to use extra caution and proper judgement if you plan on drinking during any holiday festivities.