SACRAMENTO – The California Highway Patrol (CHP) has a few suggestions for motorists looking to stay safe this year: never drink and drive, watch your speed and always buckle up before heading out.

In an effort to keep California’s roads safe this holiday season, enhanced CHP presence will occur during the upcoming Christmas enforcement period which begins Thursday, Dec. 24, at 6 p.m. and continues through midnight, Sunday, Dec. 27.

“The holidays are about family, friends and celebration,” said CHP Commissioner Joe Farrow. “Unfortunately it’s also a time of year when we see too many alcohol-related fatalities.”

According to the Statewide Integrated Traffic Records System (SWITRS) there were more than 4,000 collisions that occurred during last years’ Christmas enforcement period in California.

During that same time period, 37 people died on California’s roadways and among those killed, 23 lost their lives in alcohol-related crashes.

“Driving impaired is not worth the consequences,” said Commissioner Farrow. “Pre-plan your holiday celebration by designating a non-drinking driver before the event.”

Along with the increased enforcement effort, the CHP is asking motorists to help keep the state’s roadways safe by calling 911 to report a suspected drunk driver. Callers should be prepared to provide dispatchers a description of the vehicle, its location and direction of travel.

“Hopefully by drawing attention to the enforcement efforts, motorists will choose to voluntarily comply with the traffic safety laws and be there to ring in the new year,” added Commissioner Farrow.

The CHP will conduct a similar holiday enforcement effort over the long New Year’s weekend which begins Thursday, Dec. 31, at 6 p.m. and continues through midnight, Sunday, Jan. 3, 2010.

Follow Lake County News on Twitter at http://twitter.com/LakeCoNews and on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/pages/Lake-County-News/143156775604?ref=mf .