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Buzzed Driving is Drunk Driving
www.stopimpaireddriving.org
July 4th celebrations often include cook-outs, picnics, boating, time spent with family and friends and, of course, fireworks. But for too many families, this holiday weekend can be filled with tragedy instead of celebration. The Fourth of July is one of the deadliest holidays of the year when it comes to alcohol-impaired-driving crashes on our roadways.
 That is why CATS is reminding everyone that Buzzed Driving Is Drunk Driving and to designate a sober driver before the celebrations begin.
Statistics gathered from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration over the past 25 years show that, on average, nearly half of all deadly traffic crashes over each year's July 4th holiday involved some level of alcohol.
In fact, 410 people were killed in motor vehicle traffic crashes nationally during the Fourth of July weekend in 2009. Of that number, 40 percent involved drivers with blood alcohol concentrations (BAC) of .08 grams per deciliter or higher.
All 50 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico have made it illegal to drive with a BAC of .08 or higher.
"Alcohol impairs many of the skills that safe driving requires, including judgment, concentration, comprehension, coordination, visual acuity and reaction time," said Sue Centner, CATS director. "Even driving 'buzzed' is simply not worth the risk to you or the thousands of innocent victims who are hurt or killed each year by drunk drivers."
Impaired driving is one of America's deadliest problems. In 2009 alone, 10,839 people were killed in alcohol-impaired-driving crashes, accounting for 32 percent of all traffic-related deaths in the United States. That's an average of one impaired-driving fatality every 48 minutes in 2009.
Centnersaid that impaired drivers not only take the risk of hurting or killing themselves or someone else, the trauma and financial costs of an alcohol-impaired crash or an arrest can be significant. Violators often face jail time, the loss of their driver licenses, higher insurance rates and dozens of other unanticipated expenses.
- Plan ahead. If you plan to drink, then plan a safe way to get home - before you go out.
- Plan ahead. Designate a sober driver.
- Plan ahead. Keep phone numbers of friends or local taxi that can pick you up.
- Plan ahead. Don't drink. Offer to be the designated driver and alert local police if you see a drunk driver on the road.
For more information visit www.stopimpaireddriving.org.
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