POTTSVILLE – The North Central Regional DUI Enforcement Program is conducting DUI enforcement for the Christmas and New Year special enforcement period which begins Friday December 16 and continues through Tuesday January 2, 2012 . Police will be conducting Roving Patrols and Sobriety Checkpoints on area roadways looking for impaired drivers.

The Eastern Pike Regional Police Department will be conducting extra DUI enforcement operations during the holiday enforcement period. Eastern Pike Regional Police officers are motivated to be vigililent in apprehending impaired drivers to make our holiday travel safer.

In Pennsylvania in 2010, 641 alcohol related crashes occurred during the Christmas and New Year Holiday period with 25 fatalities resulting from the crashes.

The North Central Regional DUI Enforcement program equips, funds and coordinates the municipal police DUI enforcement in the following counties: Northumberland, Schuylkill, Berks, Snyder, Union, Columbia, Montour, Carbon, Monroe and Pike.

Sobriety Checkpoints and Roving Patrols are funded by the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA).