With the Fourth of July holiday coming up quickly, Georgia State Troopers are preparing for the holiday travel period, which begins at 6 p.m. on Tuesday, July 3 and lasts for 30 hours until 11:59 p.m. on Wednesday, July 4.

Last year, the holiday period was 102 hours long, and the Georgia State Patrol investigated 645 traffic crashes that resulted in 323 injuries and nine fatalities, according to a Georgia Department of Public Safety press release. Troopers also issued 9,983 citations, 14,767 warnings and made 288 DUI arrests.

“During the travel period, troopers will be on high visibility patrols watching for those who are driving impaired or distracted, not wearing seatbelts and other traffic violations that could potentially cause a traffic crash,” Mark W. McDonough, commissioner of the Georgia Department of Public Safety, said.

Drivers should also be aware that Georgia’s new hands-free law takes effect July 1, just days before the holiday.

During the Fourth of July holiday period, the Georgia State Patrol will be participating in the Operation Zero Tolerance campaign against impaired drivers, where state troopers will be working alongside sheriff’s deputies and police officers to apprehend impaired drivers.

“During this time of year, troopers report that impaired driving is one of the leading contributing factors in a majority of the fatal traffic crashes that they investigate,” McDonough said.

The holiday traffic count will be updated throughout the holiday period on the Georgia Department of Public Safety Twitter page.