Drive Sober holiday campaign to begin

December 15, 2016

As part of the nationwide Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over campaign, Idaho State Police and the Bonners Ferry Police Department will be out this holiday season to save lives by keeping impaired drivers off our roadways. From December 18, 2016, to January 3, 2017, Idaho law enforcement agencies are increasing patrols to find impaired drivers. During the same time period last year, agencies who participated in the holiday mobilization arrested 254 drivers who had blood alcohol concentrations (BACs) over the legal limit of .08. “This holiday season we are reminding drivers that Idaho law enforcement has zero tolerance for impaired driving, and if drivers make the choice to drive impaired they will face the consequences,” said John Tomlinson, with the Idaho Transportation Department’s Office of Highway Safety. “We hope that this warning will help drivers make the choice to never put themselves or others at risk by driving drunk.” According to the Idaho Office of Highway Safety, Idaho had 87 deaths as a result of impaired driving in 2015, and impaired crashes increased 7.7 percent over the previous year. Male drivers age 20-24 years old were over represented in impaired crashes, and weekend evening hours experienced the highest volume of impaired fatal and serious injury crashes. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration reported that 840 people lost their lives on the nation’s highways in drunk driving related crashes during the month of December 2015. “Too often, drivers get wrapped up in the excitement of the holidays and make the foolish decision to drive after drinking,” said Tomlinson. “Always have a designated driver or get a taxi, use Uber, or Lyft. Make the choice to never drive impaired. Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over.”