(VIDEO) Curbing Deadly Summer DWIs

A series of new TV spots is hitting Minnesota airwaves next week to accompany extra DWI patrols hitting road this summer — the deadliest time for alcohol-related crashes. The Minnesota Department of Public Safety, Office of Traffic Safety campaign will be specifically targeting the biggest DWI offenders, men ages 21–34.  
Also, extra summertime DWI patrols will kick-off on June 17. 

“The campaign takes phrases and images familiar to drinking drivers and flips them to reflect the serious negative consequences,” said Jean Ryan, DPS impaired driving programs coordinator.

The 15-second spots link and twist common alcoholic beverage names and drinking terms with DWI consequences, capped with the tagline “Don’t Be What You Drink.”

In Minnesota during 2008–2010, there were 435 alcohol-related deaths and more than 30 percent of those, 142 in total, occurred between June and August. During the same period, there were 98,740 DWI arrests, of which about one-quarter, or 25,519, occurred during summer.

DPS encourages Minnesotans to:

• Plan for a safe ride — designate a sober driver, use a cab/public transportation, or stay at the location of the celebration. Families should let each other know that they will be available to offer a safe ride home.
• Buckle up and wear protective motorcycle gear — the best defenses against an impaired driver.
• Report impaired driving — call 911 when witnessing impaired driving behavior. Witnesses must be prepared to offer location, license plate and observed dangerous behavior.

Public service campaigns are a component of the state’s core traffic safety initiative, Toward Zero Deaths (TZD). A primary vision of the TZD program is to create a safe driving culture in Minnesota in which motorists support a goal of zero road fatalities by practicing and promoting safe and smart driving behavior. TZD focuses on the application of four strategic areas to reduce crashes — education, enforcement, engineering and emergency trauma response.

“Heightened patrols are on the roads and there are harsh consequences for taking the risk of driving impaired,” Ryan said.

In the last five years, Minnesota averaged 171 alcohol-related deaths and 373 serious injuries annually. More than 30,000 motorists are arrested for DWI each year.