THP Helps Activate Operation C A R E Holiday Enforcement
Official Operation CARE Release
2005 Thanksgiving Holiday Historical Information
2006 Thanksgiving Holiday Checkpoints
November 20, 2006Nashville, Tennessee — The Tennessee Highway Patrol will impose several stepped up measures to reduce crashes and fatalities during the busy Thanksgiving holiday weekend. Increased visibility, saturation patrols, sobriety and driver’s license checkpoints are some initiatives that will be implemented as part of THP’s Holiday Enforcement Plan. The 2006 Thanksgiving holiday period begins at 6:00pm on Wednesday, November 22 and runs through midnight Sunday, November 26 th .
As part of the special enforcement, Tennessee will take part in a nationwide law enforcement campaign on Wednesday, November 22 nd called “ Operation Care”. The nationwide campaign will post a trooper every 10 miles the entire length of Interstate 40 from the east coast to the west coast. Members of the Tennessee Highway Patrol will participate in the campaign from 3:00pm until 1:00am on Wednesday, November 22, typically one of the busiest days for holiday travel.
“The Thanksgiving holiday is one of the busiest travel holidays of the year,” says Department of Safety Interim Commissioner Gerald Nicely. “ Tennessee is excited to be part of a national campaign on I-40 to highlight driver safety as millions of Americans travel through the state over the Thanksgiving holiday. As traffic increases, the risk for accidents and injuries also rises.”
Seventeen people were killed in crashes on Tennessee roads during the Thanksgiving weekend of 2005. That represents an increase from 13 fatalities in 2004 and 15 in 2003. There were 17 fatalities in 2002. Statistics for 2005 are on page two of this release.
“We will be working to make Tennessee highways safe for all residents and visitors. By utilizing administrative personnel, overtime S.H.A.R.E. funding and denying annual and compensatory requests unless pre-approved, we hope to reduce accidents and deaths during this hectic holiday period,” stresses Colonel Mike Walker, Commander of the Tennessee Highway Patrol. “S.H.A.R.E is a program that allows us to utilize federal funds to provide overtime during the Thanksgiving holiday.”
The Tennessee Highway Patrol will utilize S.H.A.R.E grant money to maximize enforcement efforts throughout the state. Sobriety and drivers license checkpoints are scheduled at various times throughout the holiday weekend in the state’s eight THP districts. Troopers will be looking for impaired and unlicensed drivers, speeding, and motorist not wearing seat belts. The dates, times and district locations for the checkpoints are included on pages three and four.
The Tennessee Department of Safety ( www.tennessee.gov/safety ) is responsible for ensuring the safety and general welfare of the traveling public. The department’s general areas of responsibility include law enforcement, safety education and motorist services including the issuance of driver licenses. The department and its highly trained staff of Troopers are responsible for safety on more than 15,000 miles of state and federal highways.