Missouri motorists put together a significantly safer Thanksgiving holiday period this year than they had in 2003. A dozen traffic fatalies have been recorded. Accidents, injuries, and drunk driving arrests are down from last year in calculations by the Highway Patrol. Patrol Captain Chris Ricks says traffic was heavy on Friday – the day after Thanksgiving and the first big day of the Christmas shopping season. Nine of the 12 traffic fatalies counted during the holiday weekend happened on Saturday and Sunday.