Minnesota State Patrol has tips for staying safe on the roads over Memorial Day Weekend

MOORHEAD, Minn. (KVRR) – With more traffic and construction, the time between Memorial Day and Labor Day can be the most dangerous on our roadways.

Sergeant Jesse Grabow with the Minnesota State Patrol says that with more people out traveling over the summer, the roadways can become more dangerous than you may think.

“With Memorial Weekend just being a busy weekend we know there’s going to be more traffic. And with more traffic means the potential for more problems such as crashes and things like that.”

With construction slowing down traffic it is important to stay aware of traffic around you and drive accordingly.

“You’re driving along just fine, but now, all of a sudden, something changes, traffic slows down quickly, somebody spins out, are you going to be able to avoid that hazard? So that’s a big part of it and just patience, with busier traffic, construction zones, things like that a little bit of patience will go a long way to help hopefully prevent crashes, road rage, and whatever else may occur out there.”

Grabow says that even if you’re not driving impaired or distracted, others may be, and it is important to be aware in case you have to come to an abrupt stop.

“It’s all the more important just to make sure that we’re buckled up properly, that we’re paying attention to be that defensive driver, because if you get that vehicle that’s coming at you head on, that other hazard, are you going to be able to avoid it.”

The Minnesota State Patrol will increase its presence on the roadways during this time to hopefully prevent some of these accidents from occurring.

“We do step up our enforcement efforts with different enforcement campaigns. We have a seatbelt enforcement going on right now, extra DWI enforcement going on right now, I mean all these different campaigns. But when you hear about the campaigns, it’s never about the number of tickets we write, or arrests we make, it’s about trying to prevent that very thing. To put this information out ahead of time so people make good choices.”

He adds that one of the other dangers is drivers being overconfident due to the clear road conditions.

“Sunny, clear, dry roads, I mean ideal driving conditions. But I think at the same time that almost lulls people into a false sense of security, saying “Hey things are fine, I can start driving a little faster.” So that’s why we see speed is the most common factor in our fatal crashes.”