With one of the biggest Holiday weekends upon us, it’s time to plan now for a safe and sober way home.
Many of us will be on the road this weekend traveling from family parties, viewing the fireworks, or barbecuing with our friends. Many adults will be drinking during the course of the Holiday weekend and there are a few things that you can do to protect your loved ones and other people’s loved ones who will be on the road this weekend:
- Designate a sober driver BEFORE you leave for your Fourth of July events.
- Be ready to take alternate transportation such as a bus or taxi.
- Have the phone number of a taxi service stored in your phone before you leave.
- Call 9-1-1 if you see an impaired driver on the road.
Even if you will not be drinking alcoholic beverages this Fourth of July, keep in mind that over the course of 2008, 1,179 people in other vehicles were killed in crashes involving drivers who had been drinking. Over the Fourth of July Holiday period alone (Thursday, July 3rd at 6pm to Monday, July 7th at 6am) there were a total of 491 traffic fatalities.
I am sure that all of those people that got into their cars after drinking did not plan to kill anyone. I’m sure many of them said, “I am just a little buzzed. I’m not drunk.” Sadly, even though some of them didn’t plan on over-indulging, a buzzed driving crash looks the same as a drunk driving crash.
Remember: BUZZED DRIVING IS DRUNK DRIVING!
(Disclosure: I am participating in a campaign to get the word out that Buzzed Driving IS Drunk Driving and may be compensated for this post. Like always, all opinions are my own. I truly feel that this campaign being run by the Ad Council is an important one!)