Plan Ahead This Holiday Season: Buzzed Driving Is Drunk Driving #BuzzedDriving

The holidays are a time to celebrate with friends and family. But it’s also a time to make sure you are keeping the ones you love safe. Whether you’re at a holiday gathering or a New Year’s Eve bash, many of our social plans involve driving.
According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), the period between Christmas and New Year’s typically has one of the highest rates of impaired driving fatalities.
Fatalities related to drunk driving are 100 percent preventable, and the spike in buzzed driving around the holidays is especially alarming.
Some stats:

• In 2014, 9,967 people were killed in alcohol-impaired driving crashes. These alcohol-impaired fatalities accounted for more than 31% of the total motor vehicle traffic facilities in the United States.
• Alcohol-impaired drivers were involved in 37% of traffic fatalities during the Christmas holiday period and 44% of traffic fatalities over New Year’s, making the winter holiday season one of the deadliest times to be on the road.
• Buzzed driving can cost around $10,000 in fines, legal fees and increased insurance rates.

Please ring in the New Year safely and plan ahead. Designate a sober driver before you go out this year.
Take the pledge at buzzeddriving.adcouncil.org.