Police will be cracking down on drunk drivers as part of the annual holiday season “Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over” statewide campaign.
By Jennifer Kohlhepp, Staff Writer
PLAINSBORO — Police will be cracking down on drunk drivers as part of the annual holiday season “Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over” statewide campaign.
Beginning today, Dec. 6, and running through Jan. 2, local and state law enforcement officials will conduct saturation patrols and sobriety checkpoints looking for motorists who may be driving while intoxicated, according to a press release from the Plainsboro Township Police Department.
A concentrated national effort, the campaign helps to raise awareness about the dangers of drinking and driving through high-visibility enforcement and public education tools.
”This is a critical law enforcement program that can save lives during a time of the year when impaired driving traditionally increases by nearly 10 percent,” Chief Guy Armour said in the press release. “This initiative brings attention to the serious consequences of drunk driving and the grave danger those who choose to drink and drive pose to all who share the road with them.”
Last year in New Jersey, 19 percent of all motor vehicle fatalities were alcohol-related. Nationally, during the combined months of December in 2007-2011, there were 4,169 people killed in drunk driving crashes, according to the press release.
Law enforcement agencies participating in the Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over 2013 year-end holiday statewide crackdown offer the following advice: Take mass transit, a taxicab, or ask a sober friend to drive. Spend the night where the activity is held. Contact the police if there is an impaired driver on the road. Always buckle-up. Do not let intoxicated people get behind the wheel of an automobile.