Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over
2012 Holiday Crackdown
December 12 - January 1
The holiday season is a particularly dangerous time on the roads. During December 2010, 2,597 people lost their lives in motor vehicle traffic crashes, and 30 percent of these crashes involved an alcohol-impaired driver.
That’s why State Highway Safety Offices are working with their state and local law enforcement partners this holiday season to apprehend drunk drivers and remind all drivers to Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over. See below for a list of specific state activities.
- Alabama—The Law Enforcement and Traffic Safety Division of the Alabama Department of Economic and Community Affairs is partnering with local and state law enforcement agencies to boost enforcement of impaired driving laws. Law enforcement officials also are looking for speeding, seat belt and child restraint violations. Checkpoints are being set up, especially in areas known for a high number of alcohol-related crashes, with law enforcement officials working overtime. Some local departments are hosting media events to increase awareness, and news releases and social media are being used to alert news media and residents of this increased enforcement.
- Arizona—The Arizona Governor's Office of Highway Safety (GOHS) is planning several impaired driving enforcement activities to take place throughout the state during this holiday period. GOHS Director Alberto Gutier notes that “We want people to celebrate the Holiday, a time for reflection and gratitude, but to do so responsibly by having a designated driver, calling a friend, or taking a taxi home."
- Arkansas—Arkansas law enforcement officers are working overtime conducting sobriety checkpoints and saturation patrols during a highly visible Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over mobilization Dec. 14 - Jan. 1. A statewide media buy includes radio, TV and Internet ads targeting 21- to 34-year-old males. The Arkansas Highway Safety Office is distributing a statewide news release. The Highway Department is displaying messages statewide on changeable message boards. Arkansas’s mobile breath alcohol testing unit BATmobile is used during sobriety checkpoints.
- California—The California Office of Traffic Safety (OTS) has partnered with various law enforcement agencies to deploy not only sobriety checkpoints, but also 35 special multi-agency DUI Task Force Strike Teams, hundreds of local DUI saturation patrols, and special warrant/probation sweeps targeting the ‘worst of the worst’ repeat offenders. Media blitzes and press conferences are taking place in every market. A Dec. 14 press event kicks off a four city (San Diego, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Sacramento) experiential marketing campaign, with eight half cab/half police cruiser vehicles parking in strategic locations, conveying a “pick your ride” message. Various social media channels are being used to spread the word, and more than 600 digital freeway message signs remind millions of commuters and holiday travelers to “Report Drunk Drivers – Call 911!"
- Colorado—The Colorado State Patrol and nearly 100 law enforcement agencies are conducting a special “Heat Is On” holiday DUI crackdown. The Colorado Department of Transportation (CDOT) is running its “Plan Ahead Colorado” campaign to encourage party-goers to arrange safe, sober transportation in advance of holiday celebrations. Information on www.PlanAheadColorado.com includes safe party tips, overnight parking options, and public transportation alternatives such as free bus and light rail rides on New Year’s Eve. The campaign includes creative materials borrowed from TxDOT. Outreach consists of billboards, website banner ads and posters featuring Santa and his reindeer, with messages like “Don’t drive if you’re tipsy, buzzed or Blitzen. Get a sober ride or call a cab.” This year, CDOT also distributed Spanish versions of the holiday posters throughout the community to better reach this audience.
- Connecticut—Connecticut is conducting a broad traffic safety media campaign including TV, radio, billboards and social media. Three state-specific TV commercials reinforce the seat belt safety message and discuss the dangers of impaired driving and speeding, and 23 variable message signs are displaying the Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over message on major Interstate highways. To date, the Connecticut Highway Safety Office (HSO) has awarded 77 DUI enforcement grants to state and local law enforcement agencies for the holiday period. Activities include saturation patrols and more than 62 planned DUI checkpoints throughout the state. The HSO also has provided refresher Standardized Field Sobriety Test training to more than 147 officers and funded certification for sixteen Drug Recognition Experts. Additional promotional activities include: signage and “Sober Driver” seat upgrade promotion at UConn Football and Basketball games; an increased Facebook presence via public outreach events and promotional giveaways; Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over shoot to win contests at farm team hockey games; and updates to www.Drink-Drive-Lose.com, such as safety tips for the season.
- Delaware—The Delaware Office of Highway Safety (OHS) has scheduled roving DUI patrols, aggressive driving patrols, and seat belt patrols for its Safe Family Holiday campaign, running from Thanksgiving to New Year’s Day. Paid media includes radio, indoor advertising, and the Internet. Earned media includes weekly press releases of enforcement activity results and updates on the DUI trees. These trees are housed with four of OHS's corporate partners: AI DuPont Hospital, Beebe Hospital, Dover Downs Hotel & Casino, and Kent General Hospital. Each tree begins with white lights, which are replaced by green lights for each alcohol-related injury or red lights for each alcohol-related fatality. New this year, the public can stay updated on the DUI tree online at www.DUIRealTime.com/SafeHolidays. In addition, "mocktail" parties are being held with area business, towns, and hospitals. Mocktail parties are non-alcoholic cocktail parties that provide safety information, responsible party hosting tips, and samples of “smart” party foods.
- Georgia—More than five hundred Georgia police agencies are conducting DUI road checks and patrols to keep families safe on the road this holiday season. The state's Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over enforcement mobilization runs Dec. 14 - Jan. 1. This year, the drunk driving mobilization is complemented by a new overall safe driving program called Operation Safe Holidays, which works in conjunction with the Georgia State Police to help keep motorists safe during these high travel periods. News conferences are being held around the state to announce regional high visibility crackdown activities. Georigia is also useing Facebook and Twitter to reach millions of 18- to 34-year-old, high-risk drivers.
- Idaho—While all Idaho law enforcement agencies are stepping up impaired driving patrols, 62 are dedicating overtime patrols during Idaho's impaired driving campaign, running Dec. 17 - Jan. 2. The emphasis is on keeping families safe on the highways by raising awareness of DUI enforcement and reminding the public to plan ahead if they are going to drink and to always buckle up.
Media coverage includes the NHTSA television PSA “They Will See You Before You See Them,” with an Idaho Transportation Department tag. For radio coverage, the PSA message is “Keep Families Whole. Drive Sober – The Choice Is Yours.” The outside billboard message (as seen below) is "Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over – Your Choice!"
- Indiana—Having recently ended its Safe Family Travel statewide enforcement blitz (Nov. 16 – Dec. 2), which encompassed high-visibility seatbelt and impaired driving patrols, the Indiana Criminal Justice Institute’s Traffic Safety Division will sustain communication with Indiana motorists throughout December by delivering messaging through sports-marketing partnerships and earned media efforts. The division will extend awareness of the dangers and consequences of impaired driving through uniquely developed online and mobile ads, sports-network radio advertising and in-venue advertising. Indiana law enforcement agencies will also increase enforcement efforts during this time through saturation patrols and DUI checkpoints.
- Iowa—The Governor’s Traffic Safety Bureau is working with local law enforcement agencies as they provide increased enforcement projects to help keep families safe on the roads this holiday season. Iowa is placing a strong emphasis on our media campaign during the holidays. Radio Iowa is airing a new impaired driving spot on 118 rural radio stations the week of December 17. Screenvision Direct is airing the Smart Car impaired driving video at movie theaters all through December.
- Kentucky—Law enforcement agencies across Kentucky are conducting traffic safety checkpoints and additional traffic patrol enforcement efforts through the holiday period. The Kentucky Office of Highway Safety (KOHS) is distributing a statewide press release warning drivers of the dangers of drunk driving and preparing them for the increase in law enforcement. Radio and television public service announcements are airing statewide promoting the Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over message. Social media is being utilized, targeting a young male audience. In the 25 counties with the highest number of alcohol-related fatalities, the Drive Sober message is being displayed on restroom signs and drink coasters in bars and restaurants.
- Louisiana—The Louisiana Highway Safety Commission has local, parish, and state law enforcement agencies participating in the holiday Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over campaign. These agencies will use a combination of saturation patrols, DWI checkpoints, and "No Refusal" practices as well as earned and social media to notify the public of stepped up enforcement activities.
- Maine—The Maine Bureau of Highway Safety is partnering with law enforcement agencies in Maine for the first-year DriveSober, Maine! OUI enforcement program. This year-long crackdown on impaired drivers allows agencies to focus their enforcement efforts at the times when impaired driving is the most prevelent in their community. To date, 45 agencies and the Maine State Police are participating. Each agency will be awarded up to $10,000. DriveSober, Maine! kicks off on Dec. 1, with all agencies conducting dedicated overtime patrols during the national holiday mobilization.
- Maryland—The Maryland Highway Safety Office is conducting mass media outreach during the month of December. Maryland is an active regional partner of the Checkpoint Strikeforce campaign, airing TV, cable and radio ads with its partners in Washington, D.C. and Virginia. Other holiday season activities include the annual Report Drunk Drivers billboard and radio outreach initiative, the Project Save Our Loved Ones (SOLO), which includes targeted saturation patrols with law enforcement partners, the annual Maryland Remembers Memorial event, wet demos on local radio stations, and liquor store outreach.
- Michigan—Law enforcement officers in 22 Michigan counties will step up drunk driving patrols Dec. 27 through Jan. 1. Officers from local police departments, sheriff’s offices, and Michigan State Police will take part in grant-funded drunk driving patrols, focusing their efforts on when the greatest number of fatal and serious injury crashes involving alcohol occur.
- Minnesota—Extra DWI patrols are being conducted by around 400 law enforcement agencies to encourage people to make plans for a sober ride. MinnesotaSafeandSober.org was developed to support the campaign, where people can view the new Ho-ho-tini TV spot and give a gift of a safe lift with a Designated Driver Gift Card. The paid media effort also includes the new TV spot Toasted (for New Year’s week) and the classic Elf Arrested for DWI! PSA. Partners are supporting the campaign by distributing Elf Arrest bar coasters, window clings and Take Aim for a Sober Ride talking urinal cakes. In addition, at beer stands at Target Center, home of the NBA’s Timberwolves, Designated Driver Gift Cards are being displayed and distributed.
- Missouri—This year the Missouri Coalition for Roadway Safety is running "Don't Drive if You're Tipsy, Buzzed or Blitzen" reindeer ads, using the national Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over and the state’s ARRIVE ALIVE logos. The state is doing a restaurant/pub takeover, focusing on the Missouri counties that represent 75% of the state's population and 75% of the alcohol-related fatalities, with reminders in the form of drink coasters, posters and window clings. Rural radio advertising is focusing on these counties as well. Throughout the campaign, Missouri is using its social media outlets, including running a Facebook photo caption contest. Nearly 250 law enforcement agencies in Missouri have received overtime grant funds for the purpose of DWI enforcement activities, such as saturation patrols, sobriety checkpoints, and youth alcohol enforcement.
- Nevada—The Nevada Office of Traffic Safety (OTS) held its first ‘Downtown 360 Flag Football Tournament’ in Las Vegas. Teams in the target demographic market were reminded to “Pull the Flag on Drunk Driving.” This campaign slogan was placed throughout the event. Retail giant Zappos is participating in a "DUI Day," in which local police "arrest" company managers and employees must post bail by answering a series of questions about impaired driving. Drunk Driving Awareness Month kicks off at the UMC Trauma Center on Dec. 7. This annual event brings high school students, local businesses, advocates and emergency responders together to raise awareness and educate about the dangers of “one too many” this holiday season. Interactive educational items, such as the Seat Belt Convincer and Fatal Vision Goggles, are displayed during the event.
- New Jersey—New Jersey law enforcement is cracking down on drunk drivers as part of the year-end Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over campaign. Approximately 100 local police agencies and the New Jersey State Police are conducting saturation patrols and sobriety checkpoints. All police departments have received information packets and are asked to participate and report their arrest statistics. A sample news release was distributed for police to send to local media to help further publicize their efforts. There is also a general release for statewide distribution. The program is featured prominently on the New Jersey Division of Highway Traffic Safety website, where public education information and collateral campaign materials are readily accessible to local municipalities and the general public. Local municipalities also are using banners and mobile video display signs as reminders of the dangers of drinking and driving.
- New Mexico—This holiday season, the New Mexico Department of Transportation, Traffic Safety Division is partnering with local, state and tribal law enforcement agencies to participate in a 52-day winter superblitz campaign from Nov. 16 - Jan. 6. Law enforcement throughout the state are conducting checkpoints, saturation patrols, nighttime seatbelt enforcement, and looking out for unbelted occupants. This year, New Mexico implemented a new brand for anti-DWI efforts, called “ENDWI,” aimed at calling an end to the senseless tragedy caused by DWI. The state is also utilizing social media and launched a free smart phone app called ENDWI for Android and iPhone. The app is designed to be a safe and sober driving guide which includes the laws, blood alcohol guide, a call a friend function, memory reaction tests, and #DWI to report drunk drivers. The new campaign and app were unveiled by Governor Martinez at a press event in the early fall.
- New York—The Governor's Traffic Safety Committee (GTSC), the New York State STOP-DWI Association, and local and state police are joining forces to participate in the Holiday STOP-DWI Enforcement Crackdown, running Dec. 12 through Jan. 1. Saturation patrols, sobriety checkpoints and underage drinking bar sweeps are all part of the effort. In addition, county STOP-DWI programs are holding local press conferences to localize their message. GTSC has also begun airing NHTSA’s Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over television and radio commercial statewide through New Year's Day. The STOP-DWI Association recently began airing their own public service announcements regarding the dangers of impaired driving, and GTSC is in the beginning stages of creating a prescription drug PSA that will begin airing in January. Finally, both the Chiefs of Police and Sheriffs’ Associations are publicizing the crackdown and associated materials on their respective websites.
- North Dakota—From mid-December through New Year's Eve, the North Dakota Department of Transportation Traffic Safety Office is airing two impaired driving prevention ads. One features a North Dakota law enforcement officer whose mother was killed by a drunk driver (view at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mULGAUkB6ow). The second ad, entitled Don’t Forget TODD (TO Designate a Driver), encourages the use of a designated driver (view at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o3qeSy3Foe0).
- Ohio—Through the funding and coordination of the Ohio Office of Criminal Justice Services, local law enforcement around the state are planning more than 6,100 hours of enforcement this holiday season, including eight sobriety checkpoints and more than 2,000 hours of saturation patrols. The Ohio State Highway Patrol is also increasing its presence on the state's highways. Enforcement efforts are supported by a statewide paid media buy, using the Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over message. Earned media efforts include a media release focusing on sober driving and partnering with MADD for its annual Tie One On For Safety red ribbon campaign.
- Pennsylvania—Pennsylvania is conducting increased DUI enforcement throughout December as part of the statewide Operation Safe Holiday campaign. More than 600 municipal police and all State Police troops are expected to participate. Last year during the holiday crackdown, 295 DUI and 182 speeding citations were written. The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation expects that increased police participation will lead to fewer impaired driving crashes and fatalities. Press conferences and other public awareness events are occurring in all 11 PennDOT districts. The PA DUI Association Victims Moving Memorial is the focus behind many of the press events. Additionally, video message boards across the state are displaying the Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over message.
- Rhode Island—The Rhode Island Department of Transportation’s Office of Highway Safety (OHS) is conducting an aggressive overtime enforcement campaign with all 38 municipal police departments and the Rhode Island State Police throughout the crackdown period. This enforcement is supported by a $170,000 media campaign that includes cable and broadcast television, radio, online, and outdoor billboards using the Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over slogan. OHS will partner with the Rhode Island State Police, the Rhode Island Police Chiefs’ Association, NHTSA Region 1 and MADD-RI on a New Year’s Eve earned media event to be conducted on December 27 at the RI State Police Headquarters to focus on the detection, arrest and prosecution of drunk drivers during the days leading up to New Year’s Eve. Anoter recent activity was MADD-RI's Candlelight Vigil, viewable at http://video.turnto10.com/v/67464474/madd-vigil.htm?q=MADD.
- South Carolina—South Carolina's Sober or Slammer! holiday enforcement crackdown combines paid/earned media and law enforcement. The South Carolina Department of Public Safety (SCDPS) expects 200 local law enforcement agencies to participate in the mobilization, including the SC Highway Patrol, State Transport Police, and local law enforcement agencies. Specialized DUI enforcement runs Dec. 14 through Jan. 1, featuring public safety checkpoints and saturation patrols. To go along with the enforcement crackdown, SCDPS is running a Be a SANTA! A Sober All Night, Totally Awesome! Designated Driver campaign throughout December. This includes a website, social media, billboards, broadcast media, partnerships, an earned media push, and "Be a SANTA!" stickers distributed by SCDPS Community Relations Officers. In addition, SCDPS is airing a new 60-second television spot that will educate motorists on the consequences of impaired driving and encourage them to report impaired driving by calling *HP (*47). The SC Department of Transportation is featuring “Statewide DUI Crackdown in Progress” messages on its variable message boards during campaign weekends. To kickoff the enforcment campaign, the state’s Office of Highway Safety is holding a press event at the SC State Museum on Dec. 14, followed by a law enforcement safety checkpoint.
- South Dakota—South Dakota law enforcement agencies are looking for impaired drivers on the state's interstate, state and county highways and township roads during the holiday DUI enforcement campaign. Agencies are handing out license plate frames with the Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over logo, and the message, “This license plate made by a drunk driver.” Two different TV ads are running in the state, one in which Governor Dennis Daugaard asks residents to remember to choose a designated driver. View them at:
http://www.l-s.com/_review/SDDeptHwySafety/20121127_SDOHS_JingleKeys.wmv
http://www.l-s.com/_review/SDDeptHwySafety/20121127_SDOHS_GovMsg.wmv - Tennessee—The Tennessee Governor's Highway Safety Office (GHSO) and law enforcement across the state want to remind Tennesseans that during the holidays and throughout the year, drunk and or drugged driving do not mix. Tennessee law enforcement are increasing patrols across the state to ensure everyone arrives at their destination safely this holiday season. GHSO has planned a Dec. 5 press event to commemorate the lives lost in 2011 due to drinking and/or drugged driving, with a Christmas tree adorned with special ornaments to represent the victims. The event is being held in conjunction with the Tennessee Association of Chiefs of Police state meeting. The Tennessee Department of Safety is participating as well. In addition, GHSO is working with the Tennessee Department of Transportation on a Dec. 14 press event in Franklin, Tenn. to heighten the impaired/distracted driving message and highlight the use of digital message boards for raising awareness across the state.
- Utah—Channeling the well-known Calvin & Hobbes cartoon in which Calvin simulates a car crashing into a group of snow men, the Utah Highway Safety Office is positioning synthetic snow people around a crashed car for display at a popular outdoor mall in downtown Salt Lake City. To introduce the display, Utah is holding a press conference featuring a local police chief and an emergency room doctor speaking about DUI prevention, enforcement and the injuries and death it can cause. Several local law enforcement agencies are expected to attend to help reinforce the widespread nature of the enforcement crackdown.
- Washington—Washington State is conducting high visibility enforcement between Nov. 24 and Jan. 1. Local "Target Zero" managers are coordinating these overtime patrols, focusing on the locations with the biggest DUI problems. More than 100 police agencies and the State Patrol are participating. The media campaign targets men aged 18-34 and runs Nov. 14 through Jan. 1. Using the national DUI tagline Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over, TV and radio campaigns include both locally and nationally produced TV spots in English and Spanish and in a variety of lengths. The shorter HDTV spots are being repurposed for use on websites and social gaming. Roadside billboards target the difficult to reach southwest corner of the state. Customized news releases are being distributed and pitched, and news releases with post patrol results also are planned. To extend the message reach, the Washington State DOT is using variable message signs and their Highway Advisory Radio System. Print materials include English/Spanish cards for use by law enforcement during traffic stops and coasters for placement in bars and restaurants.
- West Virginia—The West Virginia Governor's Highway Safety Program treats the time frame between Thanksgiving and New Year's Day as one blitz period. It releases approximately $250,000 in television and $50,000 in radio advertising. The state's eight regional programs contribute another $5,000 - $8,000 in additional radio advertising. Front page sticky note ads are being placed on the state’s largest newspapers on Black Friday, Christmas Eve and New Year’s Eve. Approximately $200,000 is being devoted toward funding overtime for law enforcement to conduct DUI patrols and 57 sobriety checkpoints across the state. Local law enforcement leaders are asked to conduct press conferences to raise awareness of the holiday drinking and driving issue.
- Wyoming—The State of Wyoming is targeting drunk drivers this holiday season through high visibility enforcement, television, radio, print and digital messaging. The digital messaging system (DMS) message on Wyoming's interstate highways and some secondary highways is Drunk Driving. Over the Limit. Under Arrest. Designate a Sober Driver. At the local level, Wyoming has distributed posters to the grant-funded media coordinators in each of Wyoming's twenty-three counties for placement in bars, restaurants, etc. The posters remind Wyomingites that law enforcement will be out in force this holiday season.
