GATLINBURG, Tenn. - Rangers will step up enforcement on roads in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.
Park officials plan to expand vehicle checkpoints and traffic patrols mainly around the July Fourth holiday, then again around Labor Day weekend.
According to WATE-TV in Knoxville, at least one person is killed on the winding park roads each year, and park rangers make nearly 100 arrests for drunken driving.
The additional patrols will focus on the Gatlinburg-Pigeon Forge Spur, Cades Cove, the Foothills Parkway and into Oconaluftee on the North Carolina side of the Smokies.
A $25,000 grant by the U.S. Department of Transportation and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration will pay for overtime needed to keep park rangers on the roads.
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Information from: WATE-TV, http://www.wate.com/