PEOPLE hitting the roads or the water this long weekend can expect to see police working to help keep people safe.
Double demerits will be enforced until Monday night under Operation Labour Day.
Officers will be targeting the major factors behind road trauma - speed, alcohol or drug driving, fatigue, distraction and not wearing seatbelts or helmets - in an effort to drive down serious and fatal incidents.
"Highway patrol officers from the Newcastle Hunter sector will be out in force all weekend, at all hours of the day and night, in marked and unmarked vehicles, with the aim of making sure everybody gets to their destination safely," Chief Inspector Thomas Barnes said.
"We can't however do this alone, and need the co-operation of other drivers, passengers, and members of the community."
Chief Inspector Barnes urged drivers to follow the rules, take breaks, think about those around them and be patient.
He asked passengers to keep an eye out for signs of fatigue and report dangerous driving to triple zero in an emergency, local police or Crime Stoppers.
The RSPCA reminded families travelling with pets in the school holidays to keep their furry friends safe by restraining them, giving them enough space, giving them rest and water breaks and packing their favourite toy.
Transport for NSW executive director of operations management Craig Moran said drivers and their passengers should expect some holiday traffic and keep their cool on one of the busiest weekends of the year.
Some of the heaviest outbound traffic from Sydney on Friday was expected to be on the M1 and the Pacific Highway heading north, through the Hunter. Staff will monitor congestion at pinch-points, including Hexham.
Those routes are expected to be busy on Monday and again at the end of the school holidays on October 13.
The Labour Day long weekend also marks the start of the state's boating season.
NSW Maritime, Marine Rescue NSW, Marine Area Command police and Surf Life Saving NSW are on high alert with a warm summer on the horizon and have pleaded with the public to make good decisions.
There have been 13 boating-related deaths on Hunter waterways in the past five years, with nine of those people not wearing a lifejacket.
The top three water offences detected by NSW Maritime in that time were for licenses or registrations, lifejacket non-compliance and improper or no safety equipment.
Last summer, there was a string of tragic drownings and beach incidents on the Hunter coast.
Surf life savers across 13 clubs from Catherine Hill Bay to Hawks Nest performed first aid more than 1000 times, made more than 300 rescues and carried out more than 100,000 preventative actions.
Police will be patrolling waterways - including dams and rivers - conducting compliance checks, drug and alcohol testing.
Skippers were reminded they were responsible for those on board and for others on the water, and should thoroughly check vessels that had been sitting idle during winter.
