Labor Day in Iowa – Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over!

cc licensed ( BY ) flickr photo shared by davidsonscott15

With Labor Day coming up soon, we have to keep in mind to drive safe and keep others safe when we’re travelling.  There’s no need to take risks.  On my drive back from Chicago, IL to Dubuque, IA yesterday (3 hour drive), I counted well over 10 vehicles pulled over for reasons seemingly not accident related. You betcha I was watching my speed, distance away from vehicles and reading, word for word, all of the traffic signs as if I’ve never seen them before.

There’s nothing worse or more embarrassing than those red and blue lights flashing behind you. The (seemingly hours of) minutes waiting in your vehicle for the police officer to write you an unwanted ticket proves (in perfect consistency) to destroy your day and put a hurt on your finances.

It’s of no coincidence that I’m seeing law enforcement step up their appearances near a holiday. This is the time of year where its perfect grounds to plant seeds of stupid. People have extra time off with the rest of their friends/family and want to have some FUN! That’s fine and all… they just need to be sure to keep it off the road. Their idea of “fun” could turn out to be another persons shriek of terror as a drunk driver swerves their vehicle into them.

cc licensed ( BY ) flickr photo shared by mackarus

To keep the roads in check, from August 23rd through September 5th Iowa Authorities will participate in “Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over” which is an initiative of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) as part of their special Traffic Enforcement Program (sTEP). The programs intent is to put more law enforcement on the roads during the holiday seasons.

“Our work to get the motoring public to buckle up, save lives and reduce serious injuries continues,” said Randy Hunefeld, sTEP coordinator with the Iowa Governor’s Traffic Safety Bureau. “During this sTEP project we will further focus our attention on removing drunk and impaired drivers from the roadways. A simple mistake by a drunk driver can have costly results. We encourage anyone planning on drinking alcohol this holiday to be responsible and designate a sober driver. With increased patrols and focused enforcement across Iowa, the odds of a drunk driver getting arrested greatly increase.”

They held a similar sting in the week surrounding Independence Day (July 2-8) where a total for 4,660 speeding tickets & 274 Stop sign & Traffic signal violations were sited in Iowa alone.

So please… don’t be “that guy who risks getting an OWI.”  Just give someone else your car keys if you’ve been drinking. It’s completely senseless to risk being the one that could potentially kill someone just because you don’t think you are drunk or you don’t care. It’s just as good as walking across a log over a pit of alligators – maybe nothing will happen, but if it does, it’s devastating.

Remember: Drive Safe, Drive Sober & Drive Smart this Labor Day!