With warm weather and blue skies, Memorial Day weekend marks the unofficial start of summer.
Traffic and law enforcement officials say while people are out enjoying it, traffic safety should still be top of mind.
"This is going to be a busy Memorial Day weekend, and we're expecting a lot of cars out on the road, going to the Oregon coast and going up over the mountains," said Don Hamilton, spokesperson for the Oregon Department of Transportation.
"Any time you're packing up and traveling, there are safety concerns that you want to think about," said Sgt. Kevin Allen with the Portland Police Bureau.
If you know you're going to be drinking, officials said please make a plan and don't end up behind the wheel.
"We typically will see an increase in drunk driving cases over the course of the Memorial Day holiday," Sgt. Allen said.
"Driving while impaired is one of the biggest causes of injuries and deaths out on the road out there, "Hamilton said. "Don't make that mistake."
Driving while impaired is one of the biggest causes of injuries and deaths out on the road out there.
According to Portland Police, here are the DUII arrest numbers for the city:
- 2023 (to date): 189
- 2022: 473
- 2021: 575
- 2020: 761
- 2019: 1104
- 2018: 1033
- 2017: 1039
- 2016: 1418
- 2015: 1476
As indicated in the data, 2020 is the year Portland Police Bureau dissolved its traffic division. It's partially coming back this year.
"If we can arrest someone for driving impaired, that means that they can't get into a crash and hurt somebody," Sgt. Allen said. "It's no fun to arrest people. We certainly don't want to do that. But if it saves lives, then it's more than worth it. And we want people to be aware that we're out there. So they're going to see, you know, our traffic division out working. They'll be on their motorcycles, they'll be working extra hours and they'll be looking for impaired drivers."
Impaired driving doesn't apply to just alcohol.
"It could mean pills. That could mean all kinds of things out on the road. So we all need to be very, very careful," Hamilton said.
Police said they will be out on the streets, sometimes in unmarked cars this weekend looking for impaired drivers.