To further prevent traffic deaths and injuries during the Thanksgiving holiday, the Virginia State Police will once again be participating in Operation C.A.R.E. – Crash Awareness and Reduction Effort. As part of the state-sponsored, national program, state police will be increasing its visibility and traffic enforcement efforts during the five-day statistical counting period that begins at 12:01 a.m. on Wednesday, Nov. 23, 2022, and concludes at midnight Sunday, Nov. 27, 2022.

The 2021 Thanksgiving Operation C.A.R.E. initiative resulted in troopers citing 5,127 speeders and 1,565 reckless drivers statewide. Virginia troopers charged 65 drivers for driving under the influence (DUI) of alcohol and/or drugs, and cited 477 drivers for failing to buckle up themselves and/or juvenile passengers.

There were five traffic fatalities during the 2021 five-day Thanksgiving statistical counting period and 12 traffic fatalities during the same period in 2020.