Highway safety professionals and advocates across the nation rally together to keep drunk drivers off the roads and save lives, and the South Central Safe Community Partnership is participating in this initiative and spread the word — Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, in partnership with law enforcement organizations, governors and state and local highway officials across the nation — is calling on you to help put an end to drunk driving.

This year’s Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over high-visibility crackdown runs through the Labor Day holiday on Sept. 1.

This particular time period is targeted because holiday weekends bring a surge in drunk-driving. In 2012, there were 147 people killed in alcohol-impaired-driving crashes over Labor Day weekend.

Over 10,000 people are killed in alcohol-impaired-driving crashes every year in the United States. Drunk driving is reckless and preventable, and it’s up to us to get that point across.

It is illegal in all 50 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico to drive with a BAC of .08 or higher. However, drivers continue to break the law by driving impaired, putting thousands of travelers at risk every day.

It isn’t just about making arrests — these high-profile national crackdowns save lives.

Those caught driving drunk will be caught without excuses.

We want drivers to know that we don’t tolerate drunk driving. No excuses, no warnings. If drivers are caught driving impaired, they will be arrested. NHTSA data shows that drivers respond to this type of highly visible enforcement; past campaigns have resulted in a 20-percent decrease in alcohol-related crash fatalities.

With one person, on average, dying every 34 minutes in a drunk-driving crash over the Labor Day period, that’s a lot of lives that could be saved.

The Drive Sober campaign is also one of SCSCP’s major advocacies stipulated in the South Central Regional Transportation Safety Plan. This is a living plan funded through the Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development as a way of implementing the statewide Strategic Highway Safety Plan at the local and regional levels.

While the mission is to reach Destination Zero Deaths, the SHSP and SCRTSP’s measurable goal is to reduce the number of fatalities and serious injuries by 50% in 2030.

Gramercy Police Department Lt. Jody T. Ordeneaux stated his agency will utilize a special wave grant from Louisiana Highway Safety to dedicate 100 hours of overtime for DWI enforcement.

Louisiana State Police Troop C, along with the Sheriff’s Offices from St. James, St. John and St. Charles will also participate in this effort as well. No specific details have been released as of this writing.

All safety partners and advocates are encouraged to visit trafficsafetymarketing.gov for more campaign materials.

Cassie Parker can be reached at 985-851-2900 or cassie@scpdc.org.