With more than 1.6 million Ohioans traveling this Thanksgiving weekend, sheriff’s offices from Clark, Montgomery and Butler counties are using federal grants to pay deputies overtime to increase patrols.

In Clark County, the Ohio State Highway Patrol set up an OVI checkpoint on Wednesday night at North and Center streets.

Ohio had seven alcohol-related deaths on roadways during Thanksgiving weekend in 2010, according to the Ohio Department of Public Safety.

Several law enforcement agencies participated in the checkpoint, said Lt. Matt Cleaveland, commander of the Springfield patrol post, including police from Springfield and Enon, county sheriff’s deputies, troopers and some medical personnel.

Officials at AAA said 42.5 million travelers will travel 50 miles or more from home for Thanksgiving — a more than 4 percent increase over holiday travel last year. Lt. Anne Ralston, public affairs commander for the Ohio State Highway Patrol, called Thanksgiving one of the most dangerous travel weekends of the year with busy roadways, celebrations, intoxicated drivers and sometimes inclement weather.

She said throughout the state, patrols increase during winter holidays and again during summer holidays.

Grants to fund stepped-up patrols this weekend are coming from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration Office.

“Our focus is to make the roads as safe as possible and look for impaired drivers,” Ralston said.

Ralston said the state is on track to have its lowest number of traffic fatalities, barring any significant upswing this holiday season.

If the numbers stay on track, there should be fewer than 1,000 roadway fatalities — down from 1,300 in 2005.

The Springfield Police Division and the Clark County Sheriff’s Office will use 48 overtime hours through Sunday targeting drivers under the influence, speeding, driving recklessly and not using safety restraints, Springfield Lt. Tom Zawada said.

The department is using portions of its $84,000 federal grant for reducing crash fatalities, Zawada said.

“From a cultural standpoint, (the night before Thanksgiving) is a big drinking day,” Zawada said. “Pay attention to speed and remember to buckle up.”

The Butler County Sheriff’s Office will increase patrols by up to 150 overtime hours during the same time frame.

Butler County received about $78,000 from the federal grant for the current fiscal year.

“The extra money provided through this grant is crucial to high-visibility enforcement,” said Butler County Sheriff Richard K. Jones.

Carlene Maynes, coordinator of the Montgomery County OVI Task Force, said 18 agencies are partnering for an OVI checkpoint. Until Sunday, Maynes said about 275 overtime hours will be worked by the agencies.

“It really does help to deter impaired drivers,” Maynes said. “Hopefully we can save their life and someone else’s.”

The increase in travelers is good news, according to Bill Purpura, a spokesman with AAA.

“It’s making a comeback and there’s a lot of pent-up demand,” he said of the travel industry. “There’s not a lot of confidence in the economy, but this displays Americans’ love of travel.”

In Ohio, Purpura said about 1.65 million people will be traveling, which is bringing traffic volumes back up to prerecession levels. Holiday travel fell 25 percent nationally in 2008.

“We’re seeing nice rebounds to those numbers,” Purpura said.

Over the four days of Thanksgiving-related travel in 2010, Purpura said the Ohio Auto Club, which serves 28 counties, responded to more than 5,800 calls — the main issues being dead batteries and lockouts.

Sharon Smigielski, public information officer at Ohio Department of Transportation, said motorists should not notice major highway construction disruptions this season.

“These holidays can test your patience quite a bit,” Purpura said. “Roll with the punches and enjoy yourself; this is a great holiday to be with family and friends.”

Contact this reporter at (513) 820-2179 or Hannah. Poturalski@coxinc.com.