Key West The Newspaper

This holiday season the Monroe County Sheriff’s Office will be out looking for drunk drivers as part of a special year-end Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over enforcement effort.

With the holidays comes an increase in parties and celebrations. Data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) shows that any decision to drive while impaired can have serious and even deadly consequences. Nationally in 2015, 35,092 people were killed in motor vehicle traffic crashes, and 29 percent (10,265) died in crashes where the driver had a blood alcohol concentration (BAC) over the limit of .08.

Don’t take the risk of spending time in jail during the holidays. Follow these tips to stay safe on the road:

• If you will be drinking, plan on not driving. Plan your safe ride home before you start the party. Designate a sober driver ahead of time.
• If you become intoxicated, do not drive for any reason. Call a taxi, phone a sober friend or family member or use public transportation.
• If someone you know has been drinking, do not let that person get behind the wheel. Take their keys, take them home, or help them arrange a safe way home.
• If you see an impaired driver on the road, contact local law enforcement. Your actions could help save someone’s life.

Remember, it is never safe to drink and drive. Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over.