The LaGrange Police Department is reminding drivers to not drink and drive this New Year’s weekend. Senior officer Chad Bohannon said the LPD, along with the Troup County Sheriff’s Office and Georgia State Patrol, will be conducting traffic safety points and DUI checkpoints this weekend and Sunday night.

“We’re trying to keep the roads safe from impaired drivers. We want everyone to have a safe and happy New Year,” Bohannon said. “We will be making cases as we come across them. This is a mobilization to curb unsafe driving and will not be a warning-type scenario. [Drunk drivers] are always out there, and we do our absolute best to locate and hunt down impaired drivers.”

From Jan. 1 to Dec. 29, there have been 35 motor accidents that were a result or had alcohol or drug related DUI charges handled by the LPD, according to Bohannon.

In that time, there have been 169 DUI arrests made by the police department, and 125 of those were alcohol-related.

“We are constantly rotating our traffic unit’s hours to address problematic times or places or locations,” Bohannon said. “We try to not get into a pattern where people feel comfortable driving impaired at certain times of the day. We try to keep our schedules flexible for the betterment of our streets, and we go where were needed and when we’re needed.”

For those who will be drinking on New Year’s Eve, Bohannon advises to use common sense.

“Historically, holidays do seem to see a rise in certain cities and certain locations,” he said. “We want (LaGrange residents) to utilize all our cab companies, utilize family and friends and not to take chances on just going a couple of blocks, but having way too much to drink. We’re just trying to thwart that before it happens, get folks the information to let them know we’re out there. [The LPD wants] them to have a good time, but not take that chance and drive after they’re been drinking.”

A .08 percent Blood Alcohol Concentration is the legal limit for DUI. Twenty-eight people die in vehicle crashes that involve alcohol in the U.S. every day, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.