Holiday traffic will be significant as will your chances of being involved in an accident

(Jefferson City)–Here in the final hours before the Christmas season, the Highway Patrol offers some sobering facts about taking that holiday journey. Last year during a 108-hour Christmas counting period, there were 1,155 traffic accidents. In those crashes, 11 people were killed and another 421 were injured. During the 2018 Christmas holiday, troopers arrested 106 people for driving while impaired. This year, the holiday counting period will be much shorter, but traffic on the highways will be just as heavy. The holiday counting period for traffic accidents will be from 6 o’ clock tomorrow evening and run through Wednesday at 11:59. If faced with a traffic emergency, motorists can contact the Missouri State Highway Patrol at one-800-525-5555, or Star-55 on a cell phone. Motorists should use this number if they are in a traffic crash, witness a crash or crime, or observe a stranded motorist in need of assistance, or other traffic emergencies.