Officials remind everyone to prioritize safety this New Year’s Eve

COLLEGE STATION, Texas (KBTX) – With Christmas behind us, New Year’s Eve is only days away.

An experienced taxi driver, Tim Liddle, says the roads can be busy and hazardous over the holidays, especially on New Year’s Eve.

“You really need to be aware of all your surroundings,” said Liddle with 1st Class Taxi & Transport LLC.

Liddle has years of experience driving on New Year’s holiday.

“I’m concerned more about the traffic we are going to be dealing with on New Year’s, and New Year’s Eve, New Year’s Day, and that’s the part we all need to be concerned about. You got to watch out for the other drivers more than you usually do,” said Liddle. “Just plan on them doing something silly because they are going to.”

Liddle says the best thing you can do is make a plan ahead of time.

“Have a plan, know what you’re going to be doing, who you’re riding with, and leave the car at home. Call a taxi, call one of the ride services and make it safe,” said Liddle.

He stresses being aware of who’s driving when you do call a ride.

“Make sure the vehicle you’re getting into is a bona fide taxi. Do they have a College Station license? That means that they have gone through the background checks and that they’re insured. They need to have that in their car if they’re running a valid taxi, they need to have that. If they’re driving one of the ride services like Uber or Lyft, make sure that vehicle is the same number you got on there, and the person driving is the person that is shown on there. If not, call another service,” said Liddle.

Liddle says you can book a ride with 1st Class Taxi & Transport ahead of time here or you can call (979)-969-2341. They are running rides on New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day for half the price, and they are even working with a towing company where a tow truck takes your car home while the taxi services take you home.

Liddle says his goal is that everyone is safe this holiday.

“Let’s try to work together and make sure that everyone gets home safe, and I’d like to see no accidents, no tickets, and it’d be a record here if we didn’t have anything like that on New Year’s,” said Liddle.

The Bryan Police Department also has a few reminders:

Don’t drink and driveAlways designate a driver or utilize a ride-share appFireworks are illegal in the Bryan City LimitsCelebratory gunfire is illegal and dangerous as bullets can fall from the sky and cause injury or property damage.

The Texas Department of Public Safety is also increasing enforcement during the holidays.

During last year’s enhanced enforcement, DPS issued more than 100,000 tickets and warnings. They have provided a list of holiday safety tips for the New Year Holiday, here.