The joyous holiday season becomes anything but joyous when festivities take a deadly turn because of a drunken driver. Last year, 415 people were killed in traffic crashes involving drunken drivers or motorcyclists in the last half of December alone. According to research from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, January 1 is among the top five deadliest days on America’s roadways. These grim statistics illustrate why state highway safety offices across the country are working hard to keep drunken drivers off the roads this holiday season.
As part of the national “Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over” mobilization, Governors Highway Safety Association’s (GHSA) member state agencies have teamed up with their law-enforcement partners to detect and deter drunken drivers through highly visible enforcement efforts -- such as sobriety checkpoints and saturation patrols -- coupled with strong public awareness campaigns.
“Any person who considers drinking and driving should know that police are out in full force watching for them,” says Barbara Harsha, executive director of the GHSA. “The time for warnings has long passed. If you drive drunk this holiday season, there will be consequences.”
In addition to stepped-up enforcement efforts, states are purchasing paid advertising and conducting a variety of events to remind drivers that there will be zero tolerance for those who drive in a drunken state. These media efforts support the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s (NHTSA) “Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over” national advertising campaign.
