Gloucester Twp. Cops Crack Down On Drunk Driving During Holidays

GLOUCESTER TOWNSHIP, NJ — Gloucester Township police will be keeping an eye out for residents who get behind the wheel after partying too hard this holiday season.

Police will participate in the “Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over” statewide campaign from Dec. 4, 2020, through Jan. 1, 2021, police announced Wednesday morning.

As part of the campaign, they will conduct marked and unmarked patrols looking for anyone who may be driving while intoxicated. The goal of the campaign is to raise awareness about the dangers of impaired driving through a combination of high-visibility enforcement and public education, police said.

Over the last five years, there have been 38,000 accidents involving alcohol, resulting in more than 700 deaths, police said. During the holidays, police said impaired driving traditionally increases by about 10 percent.

Last year, 20 percent of all traffic deaths in New Jersey were alcohol-related, police said. Nationally, more than 10,000 people die each year in drunk driving crashes, police said. The societal cost associated with these crashes is estimated to be $37 billion annually, according to police.

Law enforcement agencies participating in the “Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over 2020 Year End Holiday Crackdown” offer the following advice for the holiday season:

• Take mass transit, a taxicab, or ask a sober friend to drive you home or just spend the night;
• If you see an impaired driver on the road, contact law enforcement immediately to report it;
• Always buckle-up, every ride. It’s your best defense against an impaired driver; and
• Be responsible. If someone you know is drinking, do not let that person get behind the wheel.

For more information about the Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over campaign, visit www.TrafficSafetyMarketing.gov.