Stay Merry and Bright this Holiday Season

Remember: Buzzed Driving is Drunk Driving

December 20, 2018 - South Dakota holiday festivities will include alcohol setting up prime opportunities for impaired motorists to be on our roads. AAA South Dakota warns, if you feel differently, you’re going to drive differently.

During National Impaired Driving Prevention Month drivers need to remember that illicit drugs and also prescription and over-the-counter medications can impair their ability to drive safely. When combined with alcohol, they can be even more deadly. AAA’s free RoadwiseRx.com allows you to enter prescription and over-the-counter drugs to learn if they may have an effect on safe driving as well as their interactions with each other. 

The responsibility to drive sober or not drive at all if you have been drinking can’t be neglected. Have a game plan before heading out the door. These days, there is NO excuse to get behind the wheel while buzzed when there are so many alternative options to get home safely – designated driver, taxis and ride shares such as Lyft. You can also call a sober family member or friend for a ride home. While it might not be a happy conversation, they will be thankful they received a call from you rather than a knock at the door from a police officer.

According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), 885 people nationwide lost their lives in traffic crashes involving a drunk driver during December 2017. There were 18 alcohol/drug-related crashes on South Dakota roads during the Christmas holiday period last year, according to the South Dakota Office of Highway Safety.

Be a responsible host if the celebration is at your home: keep plenty of non-alcoholic beverages on hand and be prepared to take the keys away from any of your impaired guests and arrange for them to get home safely or make them spend the night on your sofa. 

South Dakota law enforcement agencies are increasing patrols and checkpoints throughout the holiday season to keep our roads safe, according to the South Dakota Office of Highway Safety. Several ENDUI activities are planned across the state during the holiday season as a part of the national “Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over” campaign. These high-visibility patrols and sobriety checkpoints have demonstrated success in getting impaired drivers off our roads. 

If you see someone driving that you suspect is impaired, ask a passenger to call *55 or 911 or pull over to a safe spot on the side of the road to make the call. Let’s start now with focused attention on safe celebrating to prevent unnecessary loss of lives the entire 2018 holiday season.