Governor Hochul Announces Increased State Police and Local Law Enforcement Patrols to Combat Impaired and Reckless Driving Through Halloween

Traffic Enforcement and Patrol Period Begins Sunday and Will Run Through Saturday, Oct. 31

Governor Urges New Yorkers To Stay Vigilant and Not Drive Impaired; Halloween Is the Deadliest Day for Pedestrians Under the Age of 18

44,545 Citations Issued During 2025 Enforcement

Governor Kathy Hochul announced that State Police and local law enforcement will increase patrols through Halloween, targeting impaired and reckless drivers. The enforcement campaign, which is funded by the Governor’s Traffic Safety Committee, runs from Sunday, October 25, through Saturday, October 31.

“Everyone should be able to enjoy their Halloween and make some great memories,” Governor Hochul said. “Unfortunately, too many drivers still make poor decisions behind the wheel that lead to deadly consequences to themselves and others. We’ve made it clear we have no tolerance for those who drive impaired, drive distracted or speed. The New York State Police and our local law enforcement officers will be out in force looking for anyone who hasn’t gotten the message.”

During last year’s initiative, law enforcement officers issued 44,545 citations, including 1,210 for impaired driving and 8,701 for speeding.

Motorists can expect several sobriety checkpoints and additional DWI patrols during the enforcement period. In addition to targeting impaired drivers, law enforcement officers will also be looking for drivers that are distracted or speeding.

Other impaired driving campaigns occur around the Super Bowl, St. Patrick’s Day, Independence Day, late summer leading up to Labor Day, Thanksgiving, and mid-December through Christmas and New Year’s.

According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), from 2019 to 2024, 201 people were killed in alcohol-related crashes on Halloween night involving at least one driver who had a blood alcohol level of .01 or higher, and 176 people were killed in crashes that involved a drunk driver with a BAC of .08 or higher. More than half (54 percent) of people aged 21-34 killed in traffic crashes during this 5-year period were in drunk-driving crashes.

Victims in these drunk-driving crashes included 31 pedestrians and 144 drivers and passengers. The risk of pedestrian fatalities is 43 percent higher on Halloween compared to any other night, according to a study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA), which was based on 42 years of NHTSA data. The JAMA study also found that children between the ages of 4 and 8 are 10 times more likely to be hit by a vehicle on Halloween than on any other evening.