Jan. 8, 2013 — According to the California Highway Patrol (CHP), the number of driving under the influence (DUI) arrests during the New Year’s holiday dropped by two in the Susanville area.

Shaun Simmons, public information officer for the Susanville area, said three people were arrested during the New Years reporting period, which began at 6:01 p.m. Dec. 28 and ended at 11:59 p.m. Jan. 1.

Most of the arrests occurred after midnight.

For the northern division, which includes Susanville, Yreka, Red Bluff, Clear Lake, Williams, Humboldt and Crescent City, there were 42 DUIs, dropping from last year’s 56 arrests.

Statewide there was an increase with 1,405 arrests over last year’s 1,270 DUIs.

In addition to the DUIs, Simmons said there were 16 fatal collisions in the state and out of those accidents, eight people were killed because they were not wearing seat belts.

The Susanville Police Department and the Lassen County Sheriff’s Office did not report any DUI arrests.

To help keep people safe, Lassen Rural Bus offered its second annual Safe Ride Home on New Year’s Eve and provided free rides home for residents in the Susanville area

According to Paratransit General Manager Gary Felt, 110 people utilized the service this year, which is an increase over the 80 people who took advantage of the program last year.

Paratransit has the operating contract for LRB.