JACKSONVILLE, Fla, — Millions of people are expected to travel on the roads this holiday season. With it being a peak travel time, officials are warning about dangers that could prevent you from arriving at your destination safely.
Florida Highway Patrol spokesperson Dylan Bryan said Thanksgiving is one of the busiest days on the roads.
I-95 is starting to get busy as travelers hit the roads for the holiday on Monday.
Trying to beat the traffic from Greenville, South Carolina to Orlando, Matt Laylock said he’s been driving most of the day with five kids in the car.
“It’s pretty stressful, so I’d like to avoid that as much as possible,” Laylock said.
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While Laylock said it’s been mainly smooth for them, Cindy Janne -- driving from Knoxville, Tennessee – said that hasn’t been the case for her and her husband.
“We got stuck in traffic even before Atlanta and it’s just been a couple different places where it’s been pretty bad,” Janne said.
Nationwide, AAA said it expects Thanksgiving travel to set new records with nearly 72 million Americans expected to take a road trip.
Bryan said Thanksgiving is known to have one of the most drivers on the roadway, and that means more potential for crashes. But that also could mean more drunk drivers on the roads.
“We’re not saying not to drink, we’re just asking not to drink and drive,” Bryan said. “DUI and distracted driving is still one of the leading causes of serious bodily injury and crashes on our highways and it’s 100 percent preventable.”
The U.S. Department of Transportation said during the Thanksgiving holiday, from 2018-2022, more than 830 people died in crashes involving a drunk driver.
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Florida Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles said just last year there were about 100 deadly crashes in the state – from the week before Thanksgiving to a few days after.
New data from FLHSMV shows most crashes over the past five years happened the day before Thanksgiving -- but the percentage of impaired crashes is highest on Thanksgiving Day.
“Make a plan ahead, have a safe and sober driver, or sober way home, utilize a designated driver, rideshare programs, cabs, there’s a lot of resources out there to get people home safely,” Bryan said.
Bryan adds rest is just as important as driving sober.
“It’s very hard during the holidays, everybody is trying to squeeze everybody in, squeeze everything in all at one time, but it’s very important to make sure that we get adequate rest as we’re traveling from one point or another because drowsy driving is just as dangerous as drinking and driving,” Bryan said.
Bryan also encourages you to check your car maintenance before your long road trip – checking your tires, prepping your fuel and making sure your windshield wipers work.
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