Operation Zero Tolerance also under way
ATLANTA—Along with all the fun of July 4th festivities there can be danger when we hit the road for those backyard barbeques or fireworks shows. Unfortunately our holiday crash stats show the travel season between July 4th and Labor Day can be one of the most dangerous times of year to get behind the wheel.
In Georgia, Operation Zero Tolerance (OZT) is enforced 24-7-365, but special enforcement periods are also used to target travel periods when impaired driving and summer holiday traffic volumes are historically the highest on Georgia’s roadways. During OZT campaigns, police using roadchecks and concentrated patrols enforce the Over the Limit, Under Arrest policy for a blood alcohol concentration (BAC) of .08, the legal BAC limit in all 50 states.
This special OZT summer enforcement period started June 18 and runs through the July 4th weekend. That’s because history tells us Independence Day revelers don’t always remembers to get a sober driver. Across the nation in 2008 during the Fourth of July travel period (which started 6 p.m. Thursday to 5:59 a.m. Monday), there were a total of 491 traffic fatalities. Out of that national holiday highway death toll, a whopping 43-percent involved a driver with a BAC of .08 or higher. Here in Georgia during the 2008 July 4th travel period, there were 1,905 crashes that resulted in 930 injuries and 21 fatalities. And more than 1-in-4 of those fatalities involved alcohol.
“Commemorating our nation’s independence should not include getting behind the wheel drunk,” said Bob Dallas, director of the Georgia Governor's Office of Highway Safety (GOHS). “It’s just not worth the risk. If you don’t want to turn a festive summer holiday into a tragedy, you must find a sober driver before you start celebrating.”
Nationally, 37,261 people were killed in traffic crashes in 2008. Out of that number, 11,773 people were killed in crashes involving at least one impaired driver or motorcycle rider with a BAC of .08 or higher.
The numbers show you’re 11 times more likely to die in a crash with a BAC of .08 or higher than if you’re in the same crash with no alcohol in your system at all. Yet millions of people nationwide are still arrested for DUI every year. That’s another reason why all states uniformly enforce the .08 BAC limit.
It’s at .08 where critical driving skills such as braking, steering, lane changing, depth perception, judgment and response time are dramatically affected. These are the very skills needed to keep everyone safe on our roads.
It’s because of these statistics that GOHS is coordinating with more than 500 Georgia police departments, sheriff’s offices and state patrol posts to run concentrated patrols and set up sobriety checkpoints on our roadways and interstates this Summer holiday season. Safe drivers will go on their way, but impaired drivers will go to jail.
“So while you’re enjoying the bright, flashing lights of Fourth of July fireworks, think about the bright flashing lights you’ll see in your rear view mirror if you’re caught driving drunk,” Dallas said . “Drunk drivers won’t be able to go home after the July 4th fun. They go directly to jail.
“If you do plan to indulge this Fourth of July, there are so many easy ways to make sure you and those around you get home safe. Arrange for a sober driver before you start drinking, store taxi cab company numbers in your cell phone or take mass transit. If you’re the designated driver, it’s very simple … don’t drink. You can also help prevent tragedy by making sure you and your passengers are buckled up. Because the best defense against a drunk driver is always a fastened seatbelt.”
The Summer OZT campaign is also part of the GOHS 100 Days of Summer H.E.A.T. initiative that runs through the end of the Labor Day travel period in September. Traffic enforcement officers will be patrolling roadways all summer during Summer H.E.A.T. to raise driver awareness about the deadly consequences on speed, impaired driving, and the failure to use safety belts and child restraints.
Impaired driving is neither an accident nor a victimless crime. The message is simple. If you drive impaired in Georgia, you will go to jail. If you’re Over the Limit, you’ll be Under Arrest. For more information about Operation Zero Tolerance and the 100 Days of Summer H.E.A.T. campaign, visit the Governor’s Office of Highway Safety at www.gahighwaysafety.org.
Traffic estimates from the Georgia Department of Transportation’s Crash Reporting Unit and the Georgia State Patrol are for 2,072 traffic crashes, 999 injuries and 18 traffic deaths over the weekend. Last year, there were 15 traffic deaths recorded during the holiday weekend. One of the fatal crashes was alcohol related and eight of the fatal crash victims were not wearing a seat belt. Three of the people killed were motorcyclists.
Col. Bill Hitchens, commissioner of the Georgia Department of Public Safety, said Georgia State Troopers and officers with the Department's Motor Carrier Compliance Division will be patrolling during the holiday weekend with a goal of keeping the holiday traffic count as low as possible.
“Enforcement personnel will be concentrating their efforts to locate impaired drivers on our roads as well as speeders and motorists who fail to buckle up,” Hitchens said. "Our Troopers and MCCD Officers will be concentrating on the most common violations identified as contributing factors in fatal traffic crashes.
"Anytime a holiday period falls on a weekend, there is an increased chance of encountering an alcohol impaired driver as you travel," Hitchens said. "Minimize distractions in your vehicle and be alert should you be forced to take evasive action to avoid a collision."
Troopers and MCCD officers are also participating through the weekend in Operation Zero Tolerance, the nationwide mobilization against impaired driving. Enforcement personnel will be conducting safety checks and concentrated patrols across the state aimed at intercepting impaired drivers before a traffic crash can occur.
The July 4th holiday weekend is also an Operation C.A.R.E. weekend. Operation C.A.R.E., or Combined Accident Reduction Effort, encourages safe driving through high visibility enforcement of traffic laws and public education efforts. The program among state highway patrols and state police agencies is now in its 33rd year and is sponsored by the International Association of Chiefs of Police.
The highest number of July 4th holiday traffic fatalities occurred in 1972 when 34 people were killed, and the lowest occurred in 1962 and 1984 when two people were killed.