MISSOURI STATE HIGHWAY PATROL
A Division Of The
Department of Public Safety
Public Information and Education Division - PO Box 568 - Jefferson City, MO 65102

NEWS RELEASE

For further information please contact: Capt. John J. Hotz
Q11122015 (573) 526-6115
November 12, 2015

EMPHASIS: Please Drive Safely During Thanksgiving Holiday Weekend

Colonel J. Bret Johnson, superintendent of the Missouri State Highway Patrol, encourages motorists to include safety in their plans for the upcoming Thanksgiving holiday weekend.

“We expect traffic patterns to be affected by the upcoming holiday as people make their way home for Thanksgiving,” said Colonel Johnson. “It’s important that everyone obey all traffic laws, be courteous drivers, and wear a seat belt. Pay attention when you’re driving and put the cell phone down. That text or phone call can wait until you’re off the roadway. If alcohol is part of your holiday celebration, plan to have a designated driver. On behalf of the employees of the Missouri State Highway Patrol, I wish you a safe and happy Thanksgiving.”

The counting period for the 2015 Thanksgiving holiday weekend is from 6 p.m. Wednesday, November 25, until 11:59 p.m. Sunday, November 29, 2014. During the 2014 Thanksgiving holiday weekend, 18 people were killed and another 469 were injured in 1,151 traffic crashes. That means traffic crashes killed or injured one person every 12.6 minutes in Missouri over last year's Thanksgiving holiday weekend.

The long Thanksgiving weekend allows Missourians to travel to see family, enjoy a mini vacation, or begin shopping for the upcoming holiday season. If you will be traveling this holiday, please make sure your car is in good condition before beginning your trip. It is also important that you are well rested before you start driving. Remember to buckle up -- seat belts save lives! Obey all of the traffic laws—all of the time. There is never a reason to speed, drive aggressively, or drive impaired.

The Patrol will participate in Operation C.A.R.E (Combined Accident Reduction Effort) during this Thanksgiving holiday weekend. As part of this operation, all available troopers will be assigned to Missouri’s roadways to enforce traffic laws, especially those related to drunk driving, driving over the speed limit, and seat belt/child restraint use. Troopers will also be assisting motorists as needed.

Over the past several years, the Patrol has used special traffic enforcement projects to further their efforts to decrease traffic crashes and fatalities. This Thanksgiving weekend will include such an enforcement project on November 25 and November 29, 2015. Troopers will be assigned at 20-mile intervals along Interstates 35, 44, 55, and 70, as well as U.S. Highways 60 and 63.

The Highway Patrol’s Emergency Assistance number is 1-800-525-5555 (or *55 on a cellular phone). Motorists should use this emergency assistance number to report traffic crashes, crimes being committed, or other emergencies on Missouri’s highways. When you dial this number anywhere in the state, it rings directly into the closest Patrol headquarters.

Approximately 63 percent of Missouri fatal crash victims who are required to be restrained are NOT at the time of the traffic crash. The Patrol urges motorists to protect themselves and their passengers by making sure everyone in the vehicle is properly restrained in a seat belt or child restraint. Join us in supporting the Drive To Zero Highway Deaths. Watercraft operators should ensure that everyone in the vessel is wearing an approved life jacket. Click It 4 Life And Wear It!!


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