SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA, CA. (Pain In The Pass) >> The California Highway Patrol announced on Thursday they will deploy a statewide Maximum Enforcement Period focused on impaired driving from 6pm Saturday, June 20, through 6am Sunday, June 21.
All uniformed CHP personnel statewide, regardless of rank, will be conducting traffic enforcement on California roadways to maintain a highly visible enforcement presence.
“Summer brings more people onto California’s roadways, increasing the risks of impaired driving. Impaired driving continues to claim hundreds of lives in California each year and forever changes countless others,” California Highway Patrol Commissioner Sean Duryee said. “These tragedies are entirely preventable. Plan ahead, never drive impaired, and help us keep California’s roads safe. CHP officers will be out in force, removing impaired drivers from our roads and helping ensure everyone reaches their destination safely.”
The CHP says that impaired driving remains a persistent public safety challenge both in California and across the nation. California experiences an average of 34,000 impaired-driving crashes each year.
According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, impaired drivers are involved in about 30% of traffic fatalities nationwide, making it one of the leading causes of preventable traffic fatalities.
The Statewide Integrated Traffic Records System, between 2023 and 2025, indicates that crashes attributed to DUI in California resulted in an average of more than 800 deaths and nearly 20,000 injuries each year.
The CHP would like to remind drivers that weekend nights and early mornings remain among the most dangerous times for impaired-driving crashes.
Authorities say the increased summer travel, social gatherings and celebrations can further heighten the risk.
Drivers should plan ahead before heading out by designating a sober driver, arranging a rideshare, using public transportation or staying overnight if they plan to drink alcohol or use impairing substances.
The CHP’s most recent 12-hour DUI-focused Maximum Enforcement Period, conducted in October 2025, led to more than 500 DUI arrests statewide.
Officers also issued nearly 1,950 speeding citations, including nearly 100 citations for drivers traveling more than 100 mph, and conducted more than 8,000 enforcement contacts.
Officers from the CHP conducted 122 sobriety checkpoints statewide in 2025, screening more than 45,000 vehicles and arresting 172 impaired drivers.
In the first quarter of 2026, officers have screened nearly 3,400 vehicles and arrested 11 drivers for DUI.
The CHP says they remain committed to reducing preventable crashes and saving lives through education, enforcement and personal responsibility.
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