Alabama Law Enforcement Agency Give Holiday Travel Tips
Millions of people nationwide are expected to hit the road for the holidays.
But before they do, law enforcement officials want to remind travelers of safety. In Montgomery, troopers say that traffic is already starting to ramp up which means people should be extra vigilant on the roads.
Some people are seeing this time of the year as the perfect opportunity to fill up and hit the road, due to lower gas prices.
“I like it because it used to be around 3 or 4 dollars you know and now it’s going down and that’s real good you know during this time of the year,” says Laura Morgan.
Alabama State Troopers expect to see heavy traffic from now until the start of the new year which means they want drivers to be extra careful.
“Put down all the distractions, be a 100 percent focused on the the task of driving, buckle up. make sure everybody in the vehicles are buckled up and to obviously never get behind the wheel and drive impaired,” says Cpl. Jess Thornton of the ALEA.
So far in 2018, Alabama State Troopers have worked over 550 fatal crashes.
“We would like to see that number not get any higher. think about how many people that is who have lost their lives and these aren’t due to accidents-they’re due to crashes. they are due to wrecks that are due to driver error.
If you happen to have a roadside emergency do your best to stay clear of passing vehicles.
“At times we see people getting struck as pedestrians because they’re just assuming that folks are going to yield to them or they’re going to move over and that may not be the case. that driver may be distracted. they may be under the influence of alcohol,” says Thornton.
Troopers say accidents can’t be avoided. But some things can.
“A traffic collision can be avoided just by obeying the rules of the road and doing what you’re supposed to do and driving defensively when you’re behind that wheel,” says Thornton.
Triple AAA officials say they expect more than 102 million people to get on the road to travel this holiday season. They say that number is four point four percent higher than last year.
Right now, Gasbuddy reports the average price for a gallon of gas in Alabama is $1.99.
