RINGGOLD, Ga. — Law enforcement officers from across the Southeast gathered in Ringgold Monday evening as part of a multistate effort to reduce impaired driving and traffic fatalities ahead of the Labor Day holiday weekend.
The gathering was part of Hands Across the Border, an annual traffic safety campaign now marking its 35th year. The initiative brings state and local law enforcement agencies together to educate motorists and increase enforcement of impaired driving and other traffic laws.
“This is what a partnership means because this is the 35th year of Hands Across the Border,” Georgia Governor’s Office of Highway Safety Director Allen Poole said. “What we’re trying to do is make people aware of distracted driving, impaired driving and speeding.”
Throughout the week, participating law enforcement agencies in Georgia, Alabama, Florida, South Carolina and Tennessee will conduct sobriety checkpoints and other enforcement efforts in their respective states.
In Georgia, those efforts will continue into the following week as officers prepare for increased traffic during the Labor Day holiday weekend.
Roger Hayes, director of law enforcement services for the Georgia Governor’s Office of Highway Safety, said the agencies involved in the campaign share the same goal — preventing crashes and making sure motorists make it home safely.
“Our idea is that we don’t have to go knock on someone’s door and tell them that a family member or loved one was killed in a crash,” Hayes said. “We want everybody to get home safely.”
Hayes said education is an important part of the campaign, but officers will also be conducting enforcement throughout the five-state region.
Georgia’s Labor Day holiday traffic enforcement period will begin at 6 p.m. Friday, September 4, and continue through 11:59 p.m. Monday, September 7, covering a total of 78 hours.
Officials say impaired driving remains a significant concern during the holiday.
According to data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s Fatality Analysis Reporting System, nearly 40% of the people killed in Georgia crashes during Labor Day holiday weekends between 2020 and 2024 were involved in crashes with at least one driver whose blood alcohol concentration was .08 or higher.
Of those killed in drunk driving crashes during the same period, 65% were involved in a crash with a driver whose blood alcohol concentration was at least twice the legal limit.
Poole said officials have seen some encouraging signs on Georgia’s roadways.
“This is one of the first years in a while that we’ve seen a reduction in fatalities on the roadway,” Poole said. “To me, that means we’re doing something right.”
As Labor Day approaches, officials are urging motorists to slow down, buckle their seat belts, put away their phones and make arrangements for a sober ride if they plan to drink.
“We want you all to slow down and quit driving so fast. Always put on your seat belt,” Hayes said. “Put your phone down. Don’t have your phone in your hand, and don’t drive impaired.”
Hayes said following those basic precautions can make a major difference in preventing serious and deadly crashes.
“If you do those four things, you stand a much better chance of getting home every night to your family,” Hayes said. “My family stands a better chance of getting home as well.”