As summer winds down, the Evesham Police Department is ramping up its enforcement efforts as part of a national crackdown on drunk driving.
The high-visibility campaign, Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over, is a partnership with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) to curb impaired driving and save lives. Through Sept. 7 (Labor Day), law enforcement partners nationwide will show zero tolerance for drunk driving.
Increased state and national messaging about the dangers of driving drunk, coupled with checkpoints and increased officers on the road, aim to drastically reduce the toll of drunk driving.
In 2013, there were 10,076 people killed in drunk–driving crashes, almost a third of all traffic fatalities.
Thirty-eight percent of crash fatalities on Labor Day weekend that year involved drunk drivers (with blood alcohol concentrations [BACs] of .08 or higher), amounting to 161 lives lost.
More than a quarter — 27 percent — of the crash fatalities that occurred on Labor Day weekend involved drivers with BACs of .15 or higher — almost twice the illegal per se limit.
Of the 10,076 people who were killed in impaired-driving crashes in 2013, 65 percent were the drunk drivers themselves.
Those 6,515 drunk drivers planned on making it to their destinations, but didn’t.
In every state, it’s illegal to drive with a BAC of .08 or higher.
Evesham Chief Christopher Chew wants to remind Evesham drivers that it’s not a recommendation; it’s the law. During the enforcement there will be a special emphasis on drunk-driving enforcement.
Local drivers should expect to see more patrol vehicles, DUI checkpoints, and increased messaging about this reckless, preventable crime.
“The number of people who are still drinking and driving is unacceptable,” Chew said. “Yes, we want to increase awareness for the campaign, but we want the effects to be permanent.”
NHTSA data shows that repeat-offenders are an especially dangerous facet of the drunk-driving problem.
In the month of August from 2009–2013, of the drunk drivers involved in fatal crashes, almost 1 out of 10 (8 percent) of them had already been convicted of at least one drunk-driving offense.
Chew emphasized the preventable nature of drunk driving.
“All it takes is a little planning ahead,” Chew said. “Designate a sober driver or call a cab. But whatever you do, don’t drink and drive.” NHTSA has made it even easier to get home safely when one has been drinking.
The new SaferRide mobile app (free from the iTunes store and Google Play), can help users call a taxi or a friend for a ride home. The app can even help users identify their location so you can be picked up.
This August and year-round remember that there’s no excuse for drunk driving. For those who choose to break the law, Evesham Police Officers will see the drunk drivers before they see the officers.
For more sobering statistics on drunk driving in the United States, visit www.trafficsafetymarketing.gov.
