NHTSA to Holiday Revelers : Drive Sober

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) recently issued a press release in an effort to urge holiday revelers to drive safely this season and all year long. They’ve kicked off the holiday season with their annual anti-drunk driving campaign. The campaign is aimed at raising awareness about the dangers and consequences of driving while impaired by drugs or alcohol. 

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) recently published a report entitled Alcohol and Drug Prevalence Among Seriously or Fatally Injured Road Users. The report pulled data from seven Level 1 trauma centers throughout the nation. It examined the prevalence of alcohol and legal prescription and illegal drugs in the blood of a large sample of seriously or fatally injured drivers and other crash victims including bicyclists and pedestrians. Listed below are some of the study’s findings.  

Recent Data on Drugged and Drunk Driving  

  • 56 percent of seriously or fatally injured road users tested positive for alcohol or some type of drug known to have potentially impairing effects.  
  • The presence of cannabinoids (25 percent) and alcohol (23 percent) were most prevalent, followed by stimulants (11 percent) and opioids (9 percent).
  • The presence of two or more drugs was reported in 18 percent of cases with serious injuries and 32 percent of the fatalities.  

Plan For a Safe Ride Home This Holiday Season  

This holiday season and all year round, the NHTSA and other safety advocates are calling on partygoers to plan for a safe ride home. If you are going to celebrate the holidays with alcohol or drugs, make sure you have a plan to get home safely. It’s a good idea to designate a driver before you start celebrating. Having a backup plan is also important in case your ride falls through. A backup plan can be as simple as using a ridesharing app or pre-programing a cab company’s number into your phone, so you’re ready at the end of the night.  

The team at Harris Personal Injury Lawyers, Inc. wishes everybody a Safe and Happy Holiday Season, and if you have been injured or if you have lost a loved one in a car accident caused by a dangerous or impaired driver in San Diego or anywhere in Southern California, contact our office at 1.800.GO.HARRIS for a free case consultation today.