After CT saw deadly crashes on Memorial Day, state police are ‘working to prevent accidents’ over July 4th

A month after one of Connecticut’s deadliest weekends on the roadways in years, state police are calling on drivers to remain alert this Fourth of July holiday.

Exactly a month after the deadly weekend, Connecticut State Police are gearing up for another long summer holiday weekend as the nation celebrates Independence Day.

“With July 4th falling on a Monday, this will likely translate into a four-day weekend for many as they go on beach outings, attend cookouts and enjoy fireworks,” state police said in a statement. “Troopers expect traffic to increase accordingly by the evening of Thursday, June 30, and continuing through the evening of Monday, July 4.”

In an effort to ensure roadway safety, state police plan to employ various methods, including laser units for speed enforcement, as well as marked and unmarked nontraditional police vehicles to patrol the state’s roadways, according to the statement.

The state police department is working to be proactive this weekend and prevent accidents before they occur, State Trooper Sarah Salerno said.

“The priority for this weekend is going to be increasing highway safety. We are going to be working to prevent accidents for July 4,” Salerno said. “What we’re pushing is all the basic safety tips for the public. All vehicle occupants wearing seat belts, people tend to not leave adequate travel time because they don’t anticipate delays. We tell everyone leave extra travel time to get to the destination.”

Police will also be on the lookout for speeding, which frequently happens when drivers encounter an unexpected delay and won’t arrive to their destination on time, Salerno said.

“We’re using lasers and some of the vehicles you might not expect to see pulling vehicles over,” she said.

DUI checkpoints will be posted throughout the state, including in State Police Troop A territory and in Hartford.

Troop A will have a DUI checkpoint on Saturday from 7 p.m. through 3 a.m. at the Exit 18 off-ramp of I-84 westbound, according to the statement.

Hartford Police will have a DUI checkpoint on Friday from 5 p.m. to 1 a.m. near 217 Wethersfield Ave., according to a Hartford Police Department statement.

The checkpoint is part of the department’s ongoing Operating Under the Influence enforcement program, supervised by the Hartford Police traffic division and funded through a state Department of Transportation grant, according to the statement.

“On behalf of the Connecticut State Police, I ask all drivers to be our partners in keeping roadways safe this weekend and throughout the summer,” State Police Col. Stavros Mellekas said. “Everyone – including troopers – wants to make it safely to their destinations. We ask all motor vehicle operators to follow state law to keep themselves, their passengers and all first responders safe while on the roads.”

The Fourth of July weekend resulted in several deaths over recent years, with three fatalities last year and one death in 2020, according to state police records.

In 2021, there were 5,390 calls for service on Independence Day weekend and 978 moving violations, according to the records. Three people died in car accidents last Fourth of July and 26 people were arrested on DUI charges.

In 2020, early in the COVID-19 outbreak, 6,520 calls for service were made Independence Day weekend, 29 DUI arrests were made and one person died in a car crash, according to the records.

For Fourth of July 2019, before the pandemic hit, 50 drivers were arrested on DUI charges and 7,184 calls for service were made, but no fatalities were reported, according to the data.

AAA Northeast predicts about 2.7 million New Englanders will travel this weekend, with about 89 percent of the travelers opting to drive.

The busiest days for roadways in the Northeast will be the afternoons of June 30 and July 1 during peak traffic times, according to AAA Northeast. For airline travelers, July 1 will be the busiest travel day while July 4 will be the lightest for air travel.

While the average cost of gasoline is slowly on the decline, the record-high costs will continue to impact travel patterns, AAA Northeast spokesperson Fran Mayko said.

“Even though gas prices are declining, they are still high and historically they affect holiday travel volumes,” Mayko said. “The recent dip in prices is certainly welcome news for travelers, and just as we saw with Memorial Day, there continues to be a pent-up demand to travel this holiday.”

As of Wednesday, the national average cost of a gallon of gas is $4.87 per gallon, nine cents lower than this time last week and $1.76 higher than this time last year, according to the AAA statement. Connecticut’s average price is $4.84, eight cents lower than this time last week and $1.72 higher than this time last year.

abigail.brone@hearstmediact.com