People will start flocking to holiday destinations and their hometowns later this week for the Muslim holiday Qurban Bayram (Eid al-Adha). An occasion when thousands of motorists hit the road, the holiday, one of two major Muslim holidays in Turkey, has been a source of concern for authorities due to traffic accidents.

The Interior Ministry announced yesterday that more than 116,000 traffic crews will be deployed across Turkey to maintain road safety during the holiday, which will start on Aug. 9. Along the 20 busiest routes in 18 provinces, police patrols will be deployed every 10 kilometers to monitor reckless drivers and road conditions. Police will also carry out inspections on more than 1,000 passenger buses, which will take passengers mainly from western Turkey to inner regions of Anatolia and popular tourist destinations in the Aegean and Mediterranean regions. Authorities will also deploy helicopters and drones to monitor the traffic all across Turkey. Additional traffic police teams will be stationed in so-called "black spots" with a high rate of traffic accidents.

Officials repeatedly issue public warnings to drivers to adhere to traffic safety rules, especially using seat belts and against driving while tired or sleepy. Traffic inspections will increase from midnight to early morning hours, and officers will regularly stop drivers to check if they are fit for driving and will help them rest if they are not.