Holiday travel tips from WFPD and WCSO

WICHITA FALLS, Texas (KAUZ) - Millions of people are hitting the road for Thanksgiving, but no matter how far you travel, it’s all about getting to the table safely.

With more people on Texas roadways during the holidays, we end up seeing more wrecks, but officers said planning ahead can make all the difference.

“So historically Thanksgiving is always one of the most traveled days in the year. So obviously you’ll see a lot more traffic on the roads and we’ll see a lot of accidents that go along with that,” DPS Sgt. Juan Gutierez said.

Two of most leading causes of crashes are speed and distractions. So, slowing down and removing anything that can cause you to lose focus on the road can help.

“So every holiday we’ll work an operation care. This means we increase enforcement, we increase the numbers of troops that are out on the road. the focus is interstates and u.s highways, we are going to be focusing on all traffic violations, however, there is an emphasis on speed and seat belt violations,” Sgt. Gutierez said.

WFPD Sergeant Charlie Eipper said this time period is a great time to practice road safety.

“It’s just a great opportunity for us at the police department to tell our citizens. We love them, we want them to enjoy this time. It’s a time with family and getting together. We want them to be safe, and so we are going to be out there to try to keep the roads safe for them,” Sgt. Eipper said