Extra DUI Patrols Planned for San Diego County Thanksgiving Weekend

SAN DIEGO COUNTY -- Thanksgiving is one of the busiest holiday travel weekends of the year, and with millions of people hitting the road, the San Diego County Sheriff's Department says it wants you to do the responsible thing and not drink and drive.

Sheriff's deputies say they'll conduct additional DUI patrols across San Diego County from Thursday, Nov. 24 (Thanksgiving) through Sunday, Nov. 27.

The Sheriff's Department says the goal of the checkpoints is is simple: to remove impaired drivers from roadways and prevent crashes that can cause serious injury or death.

"DUI-related crashes are 100 percent preventable," Sheriff Bill Gore said in a statement. "Do the responsible thing this Thanksgiving and every day: don't drink and drive."

During the 2015 Thanksgiving weekend, deputies arrested 14 people for impaired driving, while 27 people were arrested during the same time period in 2014, according to the Sheriff's Department.

To date, nearly 1,200 people have been arrested for DUI by the Sheriff's Department in 2016. In 2015, deputies arrested 1,521 people for impaired driving.

Thanksgiving weekend sober rider options suggested by the Sheriff's Department include:

• Be My Designated Driver (Dryver) https://goo.gl/H9LvXO
• Metropolitan Transit System (MTS) https://www.sdmts.com/
• North County Transit District (NCTD) http://www.gonctd.com/

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