Ridgewood Police Announce Drunk Driving Enforcement Crackdown
Drunk Driving Enforcement Crackdown to be Conducted Locally as Part of Statewide Year End Campaign
Village of Ridgewood — Law enforcement officials from Ridgewood will be cracking down on drunk drivers as part of the annual holiday season “Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over” statewide campaign. Beginning December 5, 2014 and continuing through January 2, 2015, local and state law enforcement officials will conduct saturation patrols and sobriety checkpoints looking for motorists who may be driving while intoxicated.
The national “Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over” effort endeavors to raise awareness about the dangers of drinking and driving through a combination of high-visibility enforcement and public education. “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,” said Chief John Ward. “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, 22% of all motor vehicle fatalities in New Jersey were alcohol-related. Nationally, more than 10,000 people die each year in drunk driving crashes. The societal cost associated with drunk driving crashes is estimated to be $37 billion annually.
Law enforcement agencies participating in the Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over 2014 Year End Holiday Crackdown offer the following advice for holiday season:
• Take mass transit, a taxicab, or ask a sober friend to drive you home.
• Spend the night where the activity or party is held.
• If you see an impaired driver on the road, contact law enforcement. Your actions may save someone’s life, and inaction could cost a life.
• Always buckle-up, every ride. It’s your best defense against an impaired driver.
• If you are intoxicated and traveling on foot, the safest way to get home is to take a cab or have a sober friend or family member drive or escort you to your doorstep.
• Be responsible. If someone you know is drinking, do not let that person get behind the wheel.
Use stearclear. They pick you up and drive you home in your own car. No more going back to get the car in the am. Fantastic company!
Ha! I can walk to town, train, bus. No worries here. Plus I am being very moderate these days, so not much chance of be being drunk enough to get a DUI if I wanted to.
STEARCLEAR is $40 plus $2.65 per mile. That adds up quick.
Stearclear? I don’t understand how anyone can go out, driving a car, and then, at some point during their evening, realize that they probably have had too much to drink. Are some people really that bad at anticipating or planning their evenings out? If you are driving, you simply don’t drink ANY alcohol.