Data recently released by state police show that officers across the state — including in Butler County — are cracking down more on drivers who drink or do drugs and get behind the wheel.

It’s always good news to hear that law enforcement is taking this seriously, especially in light of reports that DUI-related crashes are on the rise in Pennsylvania in recent years.

State police’s recent tougher enforcement — including a program known as ARIDE that helps troopers determine if a driver is impaired by something other than alcohol — is especially welcome as we approach Labor Day, a weekend that ranks among the year’s most-traveled.

Overall, there were 20,143 DUI arrests in 2018 across the state, up 1 percent from the 19,963 arrests the previous year.

According to data released last week, Troop D Butler had the third most DUI arrests last year.

The troop — which covers five counties, including Butler — made 1,719 DUI arrests. In 2017, it made 1,459 arrests — an 18 percent increase — while 2016 saw 1,352 incidents. In other words, the number of people engaging in reckless driving behavior appears to be on the rise.

Thankfully, the number of arrests made for such incidents is also going up.

“It’s alarming, the number of people driving on alcohol and drugs,” said Sgt. John Herold, patrol unit supervisor at Butler’s Troop D station.

We agree.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration notes that Memorial Day is the most dangerous driving weekend of the year.

However, Labor Day is close behind it as the second-most dangerous.

According to PennDOT’s data, troopers made 660 DUI arrests and investigated 80 crashes involving alcohol during Labor Day weekend in 2018.

During that time period, 13 of 33 fatal crashes were alcohol-related, while seven were drug-related, PennDOT reported.

The state’s Department of Transportation and state police are working with municipal departments to take part in an impaired driving enforcement and education initiative that runs through Monday.

While various educational components — such as safety videos shared on social media — are helpful, the best news from PennDOT’s initiative this coming weekend is that state police and local departments will increase checkpoints and roving patrols.

Butler County residents who are consuming substances that impair driving this holiday weekend should know better than to get behind the wheel of a car.

Get a ride with someone else. Take an Uber or Lyft. Or sleep on someone’s couch.

Those who operate a vehicle after drinking or using drugs are taking a serious risk.

And getting pulled over and arrested is far from the worst outcome.