Nine days into the county's Avoid the 18 campaign, 57 drunk drivers have been arrested. That is less than two-thirds the amount of DUI arrests from this time last year, when 90 drunk driving arrests had been made, police said.
Several law enforcement agencies are mobilizing DUI checkpoints in the second half of the 18-day program, focused particularly on reducing impaired driving over the upcoming Labor Day weekend, police said.
The California Highway Patrol offices in Monterey and King City are expected to devote all available officers to road duty at saturation patrols over the weekend, police said.
The Salinas Police Department also had three DUI checkpoints planned for Labor Day weekend. The first will be on Friday from 6 to 11 p.m., followed by checkpoints on Saturday and Monday nights from 5:30 p.m. to 3 a.m. the following day, police said.
"This is the last long weekend of the summer," said Salinas police Sgt. John Lynn, who is also a coordinator for the campaign.
"Many people want to blow off some steam before getting back to school or jobs," he said. "Just remember to designate one person in your party who will stay stone-cold sober and drive everyone else home safely."
Monterey County's Avoid the 18 campaign is funded by the California Office of Traffic Safety through the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
