Labor Day weekend is right around the corner. Louisiana residents are looking forward to celebrating the last remnants of summer. For some, this may include attending parties with family and friends. These gatherings may involve alcohol consumption, but party goers across the nation are being urged to not drink and drive.
Aug. 21 to Sept. 7, 2015, is the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s annual “Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over” event. Over 10,000 law enforcement officials across the nation will be focused on taking drunk drivers off of America’s streets. A zero tolerance policy is administered to anyone found with a blood alcohol level of .08 or higher.
This drunk driving focus is necessary due to the continued prevalence of alcohol related fatalities across the nation. In 2013 alone, 31 percent of all car accident fatalities were caused by excessive alcohol use. In over 65 percent of these accidents, at least one driver had a blood alcohol level that was twice the legal limit.
Despite these disturbing statistics, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has revealed that the overall number of drunk drivers has been greatly reduced across the nation. Drunk drivers tend to take to the highways at certain times of the day. Drivers are most likely to encounter a drunk driver at night. The risk for a car accident with an inebriated driver increases exponentially between the hours of 6:00 pm and 5:59 am. During previous Labor Day weekends, half of all nighttime car accident fatalities involved drunk drivers versus 14 percent of daytime fatalities. Drivers are being urged to not drink and drive during the holiday weekend.
Source: NHTSA.gov, tNHTSA kicks off annual ‘Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over’ national law enforcement crackdown against drunk driving,naaccessed on Aug. 31, 2015
