| "Alcohol is a hypnotic sedative and nervous | | | | About two in every five Americans will be |
| system suppressive. Addiction to alcoholism has | | | | involved in an alcohol-related crash at some time |
| become a major social problem. Driving under | | | | in their lives. (NHTSA, 1996) |
| influence of alcohol has become one of the | | | | In 2004, 30 percent of all fatal crashes during the |
| common feature and cause of accidents today. | | | | week were alcohol-related, compared to 51 |
| As per studies carried out by NHTSA in 2006, | | | | percent on weekends. For all crashes, the alcohol |
| Alcohol-related motor vehicle accidents under | | | | involvement rate was 5 percent during the week |
| influence of alcohol kill someone every 31 minutes | | | | and 12 percent during the weekend. alcohol-related |
| and injure someone every two minutes in US | | | | crashes tend to be much more serious. |
| alone. | | | | It is estimated that 2.6 million drunk driving |
| In 2005, 16,885 people died in alcohol-related | | | | crashes each year victimize 4 million innocent |
| motor vehicle crashes, accounting for 39% of all | | | | people who are injured or have their vehicles |
| traffic-related deaths in the United States (NHTSA | | | | damaged. |
| 2006). | | | | Male drivers involved in fatal crashes were nearly |
| In 2006 there were 17,941 driving fatalities related | | | | twice as likely to have been intoxicated (21.8%) |
| to alcohol. This was 41 percent of the total | | | | than were females (11.2%). |
| 43,000 fatalities. | | | | 18-20 year olds are responsible for more than 10 |
| An alcohol-related motor vehicle crash kills | | | | percent of the drunken driving trips in America. |
| someone every 31 minutes and nonfatally injures | | | | More than 2,300 anti-drunk driving laws have been |
| someone every two minutes (NHTSA 2006). | | | | passed since 1980. |
| Drugs other than alcohol (e.g., marijuana and | | | | In addition to possible jail time and fines, a DUI |
| cocaine) are involved in about 18% of motor | | | | conviction is cause to have your insurance policy |
| vehicle driver deaths. These other drugs are | | | | revoked and rates to skyrocket. Many people will |
| generally used in combination with alcohol (Jones | | | | be forced to get SR-22 insurance. |
| et al. 2003). | | | | Ways to Avoid Driving Drunk: |
| Each year, alcohol-related crashes in the United | | | | Get a designated driver. |
| States cost about $51 billion (Blincoe et al. 2002). | | | | Drink at locations within walking distance of your |
| Most drinking and driving episodes go undetected. | | | | home. |
| In 2005, nearly 1.4 million drivers were arrested | | | | Call a cab. |
| for driving under the influence of alcohol or | | | | Search for services that will take both you and |
| narcotics (Department of Justice 2005). That's | | | | your car home if you are drunk. |
| less than one percent of the 159 million | | | | Look for public transportation in larger cities. |
| self-reported episodes of alcohol-impaired driving | | | | Ask the bartender for help and let him know if |
| among U.S. adults each year (Quinlan et al. 2005). | | | | you are the designated driver. |
| Half of all holiday driving fatalities are | | | | Offer to pay for a cab or drive friends home if |
| alcohol-related. | | | | they are drunk. |
| Most people with DUIs are not alcoholics. | | | | Drink nonalcoholic beverages. |
| About 80 percent of alcohol-related fatalities are | | | | Life is precious. It is in our hands to curb this |
| caused by beer consumption. | | | | menace. |