Year-End Drive Sober Campaign Begins Tomorrow in Cranford

Cranford, NJ -- As the year comes to a close, police departments across the Garden State will be cracking down on drunk drivers as part of the Drive Sober Or Get Pulled Over Campaign.

Berkeley Heights, Cranford, Fanwood, Linden, Mountainside, Rahway, Roselle Park, Roselle, Union police departments in Union County are among those participating in New Jersey.

“The end-of-year holidays are when most Americans gather to enjoy their free time with friends and family, according to the Division of Highway Traffic Safety in New Jersey. ”They are also some of the most deadly times on American roads due to impaired driving.”

The goal of this nation-wide campaign is prevention.

“The key to deterring impaired driving is highly visible enforcement,” according to Division of Highway Traffic Safety in New Jersey. “The research is clear on the affect highly visible enforcement has on deterring impaired driving. Prevention and not arrest is the goal of the campaign. Drivers must perceive that the risk of being caught is too high before their behavior will change.”

Police departments will be spread the message to drivers in an effort to convince audiences that the chance of being caught is too high to risk.

Don’t Be a Statistic...In 2012

• 10,322 people were killed in motor vehicle traffic crashes. These alcohol impaired-driving fatalities accounted for 31 percent of the total motor vehicle traffic fatalities in the United States.
• Traffic fatalities in alcohol-impaired-driving crashes increased by 4.6 percent from9,865 in 2011 to 10,322 in 2012.
• Alcohol impairment among drivers involved in fatal crashes was almost 4 times higher at night than during the day (35 percent versus 9 percent).
• Thirty percent of drivers involved in fatal crashes on weekends were alcohol-impaired, compared with 15 percent during the weekdays.
• Twenty-one percent of fatalities in motor vehicle traffic crashes involved drivers or motorcycle riders with BACs of .08 or above — an average of one fatality every 51 minutes.
• The percentage of drivers with BACs of .08 or above involved in fatal crashes was highest for motorcycle riders (27 percent), followed by passenger cars (23 percent) and drivers of light trucks (22 percent).
• Twenty-seven percent of the 5,075 motorcycle riders who died in single-vehicle crashes had BACs of .08 or above.
• In fatal crashes in 2012 the highest percentage of drivers with a BAC level of .08 or higher was for drivers ages 21 to 24 (32%), followed by ages 25 to 34 (29%) and 35 to 44 (25%).
• Over 1.2 million drivers were arrested in 2011 for driving under the influence of alcohol or narcotics. About one-third of all drivers arrested or convicted of drunk driving are repeat offenders.