Special to Iredell Free News
RALEIGH — In anticipation of the upcoming Christmas and New Year’s holidays, the N.C. State Highway Patrol is putting safe driving at the top of its Christmas wish list.
According to AAA, more than 112 million travelers are expected to leave home throughout the holiday period to spend time with family and friends. With this in mind, troopers across the state are focusing on driver behavior in an attempt to ensure everyone arrives safely to their intended destination.
Last year, troopers responded to 3,102 collisions between December 24 and January 2. Among those collisions, 716 resulted in injuries and 19 resulted in a fatality.
SHP hopes to decrease the number of collisions during the same time frame this year by focusing on violations such as excessive speeding, reckless driving, following too close and impaired driving.
“The Christmas season is a time to be shared with family and friends,” said Col. Glenn McNeill Jr., commander of the State Highway Patrol. “Our priority is to reduce needless collisions before they occur in hopes of reporting zero lives lost throughout this holiday season.”
With distracted driving on the rise across the nation, the Highway Patrol is also taking a proactive approach in reducing distracted driving collisions with the release of a Christmas Public Service Announcement entitled “Two Choices, Your Decision.”
While there are several different types of distractions that affect safe driving, the PSA focuses on the dangers associated with texting while driving.
Watch the PSA
I travel three days a week around N.C. I know and appreciate the N.C. Highway Patrol, but the speed limit signs mean nothing on interstates. Rain or shine, the speed limits mean nothing. The law requires that if its rains and your wipers are on your headlights are to be on. The state could collect a lot of fines just ticketing those drivers. Good luck to the HP. Be safe.