Arlington County Police are conducting additional DUI patrols during the holiday season.
The DUI enforcement campaign started Sunday and will run through Jan. 3. It coincides, in part, with the SoberRide free taxi service that’s currently in effect.
From an ACPD press release:
Due to the increase in drunk-driving-related fatalities around the holidays each year, law enforcement agencies across America will be actively searching for and arresting drunk drivers from December 18, 2016 to January 3, 2017. During the 2015 Christmas holiday period (6 p.m. December 24th – 5:59 a.m. December 28th), the nation lost 34 lives per day in drunk driving crashes–a total of 120 deaths over 3.5 days.
If you plan on drinking this holiday season, hand the keys over to someone else – a sober friend, a taxi, a ride share driver or public transportation. Washington Regional Alcohol Program’s 2016 Holiday SoberRide program is offering free taxi rides home from 10:00 pm to 6:00 am nightly from Friday, December 16 through Sunday, January 1, 2017. To receive a free cab ride home (up to a $30.00 fare), call 800-200-8294 (TAXI). Or, try NHTSA’s SaferRide mobile app, which allows users to call a taxi or a friend by identifying their location so they can be picked up. The app is available at http://ow.ly/RWs3S for Android and http://ow.ly/RWs8h for iPhone users.
As part of the national Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over enforcement campaign period, police will be increasing the number of patrols, setting up roadblocks and using local media to reach out to all drivers. If you’re drinking and driving, Arlington County Police Department will stop you.
If you see a drunk driver on the road, call the police right away. If someone you know is about to drive after drinking, take their keys and help them get home safely.
Please follow these tips to keep the holidays safe and happy:
- Even one drink can impair your judgment and increase the risk of getting arrested for driving drunk–or worse, the risk of having a crash.
- If you will be drinking, do not plan on driving. Plan ahead; designate a sober driver before the party begins.
- If you have been drinking, do not drive. Call a taxi, phone a sober friend or family member, use public transportation, request a ride sharing application or call SoberRide.
Remember, driving after drinking should never be an option. Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over.