ALEA offers Labor Day weekend safety tips

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Labor Day weekend traffic

The Alabama Law Enforcement Agency (ALEA) will be out in force this Labor Day weekend, on the lookout for those breaking the law and putting others in danger, as Alabamians head outside for summer’s unofficial grand finale.

The ALEA is anticipating a surge of late-summer travel over the long weekend with heavier-than-usual traffic on Alabama’s roadways and waterways.

“Safety is one of our top priorities throughout the year, but it’s especially important during extended holiday weekends, when so many want to enjoy one last seasonal road trip to the lake, beach or other warm-weather attraction,” Alabama’s Secretary of Law Enforcement Hal Taylor said in a statement.

During Labor Day weekend, which runs from 12:01 a.m. Friday, Sept. 1, to midnight Monday, Sept. 4, Troopers in ALEA’s Highway Patrol and Marine Patrol Divisions will step up patrol and enforcement efforts across the state to promote safety and work to prevent crashes, injuries and deaths.

Troopers will conduct sobriety checks throughout the weekend, in an effort to remove impaired individuals from behind the wheels of vehicles and boats, as part of the state’s participation in the national “Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over” safety campaign.

Taylor has offered five tips he’s dubbed, “Five to Stay Alive,” for all traveling through Alabama this Labor Day weekend:

  1. Avoid driving and/or boating under the influence of alcohol or drugs. If you are impaired, do not drive or operate a boat. Designate a sober driver in advance, call a cab, use public transportation or call a sober friend or family member to get you home safely.
  2. Simply obey the law. Avoid speeding, following too closely and other dangerous – sometimes deadly – behavior on Alabama’s roadways and waterways.
  3. Buckle up – no matter how short your trip. Ensure all of the vehicle’s occupants are buckled up (or using a child restraint system) and those on your boat are using or have access to personal flotation device (PFDs are required at all times for ages 8 and younger.)
  4. Avoid the water during inclement weather, particularly when it includes thunder and lightning.
  5. Be even more cautious when traveling through construction zones.