Alaska State and Wildlife Troopers are halfway through their high-visibility enforcement campaign for the holiday season and have already issued 525 traffic citations, according to a Dec. 23 press release from the Department of Public Safety.
The enforcement campaign began Dec. 11 and will continue through Jan. 1.
“We’re only halfway through our holiday safety campaign and troopers have been busy,” Lt. Freddie Wells, Deputy Commander for B Detachment, said in the release. “We will continue to enforce safe seat belt usage and keep our eyes out for people driving under the influence, driving distracted, speeding, driving aggressively – anything that could jeopardize the safety of Alaskans during the holiday season.”
Trooper contacts from Dec. 11 through Dec. 23 resulted in 20 misdemeanor DUI arrests, 20 drivers charged with driving with a suspended or revoked license and 16 Report Every Dangerous Driver Immediately reports made with five of those 16 drivers ultimately determined not to be DUI.
Also during that time period, 75 damage-only crashes, nine crashes resulting in injury and four fatal collisions were investigated by troopers.
Of the 525 citations issued, 243 were issued for speeding and 13 were issued for seat belt or other occupant restraint violations.
Funding for the increased highway patrol efforts comes from the National DUI Events High Visibility Enforcement Campaign. Funds are issued through the Alaska Highway Safety Office.
