There will be more police officers, deputies and state troopers on the roadways in Montgomery and Greene counties this St. Patrick’s weekend watching for folks who opt to imbibe and drive.

“Plan ahead. Drink where you stay. Call a cab. Call a friend,” Lt. Douglas L. Eck, the Ohio State Highway Patrol’s Xenia post commander, said.”If you hurt somebody while driving impaired, an OVI (operating a vehicle impaired) can be a felony. You can go to jail.”

The Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office, the highway patrol and the Montgomery County Combined Agency Task Force plans to hold a sobriety checkpoint in Harrison Twp. this weekend. The exact location is expected to be announced today.

Ten additional Montgomery County sheriff’s deputies also will be on patrol from Friday to Sunday as part of a saturation patrol, Major Daryl Wilson of the Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office said. Deputies will be looking for OVI offenses, seat belt violations and other violations that contribute to serious and fatal crashes such as distracted drivers.

“St. Patrick’s Day is a big drinking day where ever you are,” Wilson said. “We’re not saying don’t drink. We’re saying, use good judgement when getting behind the wheel of a vehicle.”

Major Eric Spicer of the Greene County Sheriff’s Office, said a sobriety checkpoint also will be held in Beavercreek near the Greene Towne Center on Saturday.

Throughout 2012 troopers made 24,520 OVI arrests statewide. Of those, nearly one in four – 23 percent – included a speed violation and 17 percent included a violation for driving without a valid driver license.There were 458 alcohol related crashes last year, including 20 fatalities, according to the Ohio Department of Public Safety,