HARTFORD – When you travel to your Memorial Day weekend destination, you might have to sit in traffic and unfortunately more drivers mean more risks on the road.
Connecticut State Police are prepared for increased traffic with a heightened presence of troopers on the highway.
State Trooper Christopher Scott brought FOX61 on a ride along, Thursday. While responding to two accidents on I-84, many drivers were observed not moving over fast enough for police.
"It's stressful, you’re trying to get through stopped traffic and you have to deal with vehicles that move to the left, vehicles that just stop where they are,” said Trooper Scott.
He said it’s important to obey the "Move Over Law" and get out of the way for emergency vehicles.
"It takes away from our response time from the people that need us,” he said. "The person that could potentially be injured at that motor vehicle accident now has to wait that little bit longer for us to get there and help them.”
A holiday weekend only heightens risks as more drivers hit the road. It’s typical for police to see more crashes, drunk driving and disabled motorists on the road.
Last Memorial Day weekend, state Police responded to 447 crashes in which 74 people were injured and two people died.
Connecticut State Troopers arrested 51 drunk drivers, charged 1,263 motorists with speeding, 903 with seat-belt violations, and 4,111 with moving violations.
This Memorial Day, troopers will take part in the National C.A.R.E program which stands for Combined Accident Reduction Effort. This is a push nationwide to enhance safety.
The plan for police is to focus enforcement on all hazardous moving violations including illegal cell phone and seat-belt use. There will be troopers in both marked and unmarked vehicles and more DUI checkpoints.
You can expect similar enforcement from local agencies as several will also be hosting DUI checkpoints including New Britain, Middletown, Norwalk and Hartford.
State Police ask you buckle up, obey speed limits, keep a distance away from the car in front of you, avoid distractions while driving and do not drink and drive.