| SPRINGFIELD, IL -– The Illinois Department
of Transportation, Illinois State Police and local law
enforcement agencies throughout Illinois are teaming up on one
of the most aggressive impaired driving reduction efforts to
date. IDOT and law enforcement will be delivering the, You Drink
& Drive. You Lose, message to drivers during a 17-day
enforcement period, centered on Labor Day Weekend.
The more than two week crackdown will kick-off at news
conferences throughout Illinois at 10:00 am on Thursday,
August 26, notifying motorists that drinking and driving
will not be tolerated in Illinois. This is the first
national crackdown effort since all 50 states and the
District of Columbia enacted .08 Blood Alcohol Content (BAC)
Laws for impaired driving.
In 2003, Illinois had 1,453 persons killed in traffic
crashes, of those fatalities, 639 were alcohol related.
“We are trying to save lives with this stepped up
enforcement during this two and a half week period,” said
IDOT Secretary Tim Martin. “Between 2000 and 2003, 74 people
were killed in Labor Day crashes, in 2003 60%, of our Labor
Day fatalities were related to alcohol. That’s
unacceptable.”
The You Drink & Drive. You Lose enforcement combines
focused law enforcement efforts with a more than $14 million
national advertising campaign, the largest paid media buy
since the 1999 inception of You Drink & Drive. You Lose.
Illinois’ share of the media campaign is nearly $700,000,
and will highlight strict enforcement of drunk-driving laws
during the 17-day crackdown.
Statewide, more than 350 local law enforcement agencies
will be teaming up with the Illinois State Police to conduct
roadside safety checks and saturation patrols.
“Our message is clear, we are taking a zero tolerance
approach to those who decide to drink and drive,” said
Illinois State Police Director Larry Trent. “You can expect
to see law enforcement out in full force during the stepped
up enforcement period. I want to be very clear, if you drive
while intoxicated, you will go to jail.”
According to the National Highway Traffic Safety
Administration, studies show that nearly 97 percent of
Americans view drinking and driving by others as a threat to
their families and themselves. Americans support tougher
enforcement and rank impaired driving ahead of healthcare,
poverty, the environment and gun control as an issue of
importance.
”We are committed to curb the problem of drinking and
driving, which is an epidemic in Illinois,” Secretary Martin
said. “We believe that through strict law enforcement, we
can combat this very real and deadly problem.”
In addition to checking for impairment, police will also be
checking for compliance with the Illinois primary
enforcement seatbelt law.
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