New Year’s is a great time to celebrate and enjoy time with friends and family. Unfortunately, it is also a time when far too many people make the choice to drink and drive. In fact, Auto Guide indicated in a 2011 article that New Years is the worst day of the year for driving while intoxicated. Sadly, almost half of the deadly car wrecks on New Year’s Eve involve a driver who is intoxicated.
Because of the drunk driving dangers, efforts exist throughout New York State to help prevent drunk driving over New Year’s. Our Queens accident attorneys urge every driver to be aware of the crackdown on New Year’s drunk drivers and to refrain from drinking and driving this holiday season. 
New Year’s Drunk Driving Dangers
In New York, 315 drunk driving deaths occurred in 2011 according to Mothers Against Drunk Driving. Fatal drunk driving accidents happen far too often and cause too many lost lives, and enforcement efforts are underway to try to curb the number of intoxicated drivers on the roads. For example, the Stop DWI New York Foundation has jointed forces with local, federal and state governments to educate the public and to step up enforcement of drunk driving laws.
Both enforcement and education efforts are in full-force over the New Year’s Holiday and the Governors Highway Safety Association has reported that New York is participating in their national Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over campaign. The Stop DWI Campaign as well as local law enforcement have coordinated a crackdown with sobriety checkpoints, extra patrols and bar sweeps to catch underage drinkers. The program will run from December 12 until January 1 and also includes public service announcements and television commercials highlighting the dangers of impaired driving.
Getting this message out to individuals of all ages is very important, but it may be especially important to educate teenagers about the dangers of driving drunk on New Years since a recent Drive On article indicated that one in teen teens admitted to driving drunk last New Years in response to a recent survey.
Make Sure You Don’t Drink and Drive This New Years
The Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over campaign is intended to emphasize to drivers that they will be pulled over and subject to arrest if they have too much to drink. While an arrest is bad, causing an accident is much worse. To avoid arrest, avoid hurting others and improve your chances of staying safe this New Years:
- Don’t go out to drink without a designated driver.
- Don’t let your friends drive drunk or get into the car with someone drunk.
- Supervise your teens and make sure you know where they are and how they are getting home.
By keeping these three simple tips in mind, hopefully your New Year’s will be a fun and safe one.
The Law Offices of Nicholas Rose, PLLC offers free consultations to accident victims. Call 1-877-313-7673 to speak with someone about your case and to discuss your rights today!
Additional Resources:
NYC Traffic Accidents in Focus as Holidays Approach, New York Injury Lawyer Blog November 19, 2012
