Illinois State Police District 15 announced plans for officers to conduct patrols of major Illinois highways at night during October.

Among the highways that will be under further surveillance from patrol officers is Reagan Memorial Highway in DeKalb County, according to a Thursday press release from the Illinois State Police Division of Patrol Operations.

Nighttime Enforcement Patrols, or NITE project as they are also refereed to in the press release, is funded through the Illinois Department of Transportation Division of Traffic Safety.

The Jane Addams Memorial Tollway and Tri-State Tollway will also both be under further patrol.

State troopers “will have a zero tolerance approach to impaired and unrestrained drivers during these patrols,” the press release said.

Statistics from IDOT show a third of fatal car crashes in 2017 were caused, to some degree, by alcohol consumption. 263 died in car crashes while not wearing a seat belt.

DeKalb County has only seen three fatal crashes in 2019 compared to 12 in 2018, according to IDOT’s website. As of Oct. 14, the death toll this year is down by 86 deaths compared to the same period last year.

The Illinois State Police press release reiterates potential punishments for drivers who are found driving under the influence. Violators are subject to the max sentence of a year in prison after their first conviction and 12 years for any further convictions, or if the crash causes bodily harm to others.