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Highway safety effort targets impaired drivers

Ensuring safe travel on Idaho’s highways is a prime reason for high-visibility education and enforcement campaigns that target impaired driving, such as one planned statewide beginning Monday and continuing through March 18.

ITD’s Office of Highway Safety works with partners statewide to eliminate deaths and injuries from traffic crashes that are a result of dangerous driving behaviors. This effort is part of the department’s commitment to achieve a goal of zero deaths on Idaho’s highways.

According to statistics gathered by ITD, 65 agencies statewide participated in the last round of holiday patrols that were funded through an ITD-administered federal grant.

That Christmas/New Year’s traffic safety effort identified more than just impaired drivers or those who were involved in dangerous driving behaviors or caught breaking traffic laws.

Law enforcement officers made 461 driving under the influence (DUI) arrests across the state during the 15-day period (Dec. 17, 2011, to Jan. 1, 2012).

In addition to the DUI arrests, law enforcement officers apprehended 404 fugitives, made 326 felony arrests, recorded 276 drug arrests and recovered 19 stolen vehicles. A number of other citations also were issued during the campaign:

746 seat belt citations
34 child passenger safety citations
555 suspended license citations
1,903 uninsured motorist citations
3,126 speeding citations, and
59 reckless driving citations.

“We encourage every driver to make smart choices when behind the wheel of a motor vehicle or riding a motorcycle,” said ITD’s Kevin Bechen. “ITD and its highway safety partners are committed to doing everything we can to help keep families safe and whole.”