You might see a few more officers on the road this holiday weekend.
That’s because the California Highway Patrol is stepping up its enforcement.
Now through Monday night, the CHP will be out in full force.
During this same time last year, 30 people were killed in car crashes in California.
CHP Templeton Officer Trevor Ashby is patrolling the road as summer winds down.
"The registration on the vehicle is expired," said Officer Ashby during a traffic stop Friday afternoon along Highway 101.
He’s just one of many CHP officers working this Labor Day weekend.
"I was driving today, and I saw a fair amount of officers on the road," said Jordan Wilby of Los Angeles.
"We’re coming up on the 46 East right now," Officer Ashby explained during a ride along with us. "Right now, this is all the people coming in from the valley from out of town and so here you look for a lot of speed, a lot of distracted drivers, seatbelt violations, red light violations especially in the intersections up here."
Officer Ashby is also looking for impaired drivers.
"Our main goal isn’t to arrest somebody after they crash or to investigate the crash. Our main goal is to stop the crash from even happening."
This same weekend last year, more than 1,000 people were arrested for DUI in California.
"If you smoke and you get in a car, it’s the same as taking a drink and getting in a car and driving."
He says swerving and the smell can indicate there’s marijuana involved.
For those braving the drive this holiday weekend…
"It was bumper to bumper," said Sean Stern of Rancho Cucamonga. "We ended up going off roading a little bit through some horse farms and kind of went through mountain path in order to avoid traffic but then just wrapped around and found more traffic."
"The roads are busy but we thought they might be more congested so it’s been a good 65 miles per hour," said Charles Wilby of Santa Barbara.
When you’re driving this holiday weekend, remember to move or slow down when you see emergency personnel with their lights on.
"We’re stopped here. My partner is here on a traffic stop and we’re on the freeway. We’ve got cars going past us about 65 miles an hour and one of the biggest things that’s happened in the past few years is the move over or slow down law," Officer Ashby.
He also wants you to remember this: "Be a little bit more patient and pay more attention just because there are so many more people on the road."
Officer Ashby adds that he’s actually seen a decrease in drivers texting and driving compared to the last three to four years.
The CHP’s maximum enforcement period ends at 11:59 p.m. on Monday.
