Crime & Safety
Holiday Weekend Means Increased DUI Patrols
While there's never a good time to drink and drive, this weekend is an especially bad time to do so in Bucks County.
Memorial Day weekend marks a time of ramped up enforcement of Pennsylvania's impaired driving laws by police in Warminster and across the commonwealth.
Nearly one third of fatal impaired driving related accidents happen between May and September, according to the Pennsylvania Driving Under the Influence Association.
Sometime between Friday and Monday, state police from the Trevose outpost will be conducting a sobriety checkpoint in Bucks County, according to information released to Patch. The location of the checkpoint will not be released in advance.
Find out what's happening in Warminsterwith free, real-time updates from Patch.
A sobriety checkpoint is a traffic safety exercise where troopers stop vehicles at selected locations to briefly observe drivers for articulable facts and/or behaviors normally associated with alcohol or drug impairment, according to state police Trevose station commander Sgt. Jonathan Nederostek.
Law enforcement have one main goal at these checkpoints: Reduce the number of impaired drivers on local roads.
Find out what's happening in Warminsterwith free, real-time updates from Patch.
"We have zero tolerance for impaired drivers," said PA DUI Association Executive Director C. Stephen Erni. "Every available officer will be out on the roadways in an effort to reach our goal of no traffic related fatalities."
During the 2011 Memorial Day weekend travel period, 144 impaired driving wrecks took the lives of 10 people across the nation, according to data from TEAM DUI, a group formed by police in the state to stop impaired driving.
Northampton police have distributed a message about the increased DUI enforcement to township e-mail subscribers and members of the Council Rock School District, according to Chief Barry Pilla.
Mothers Against Drunk Driving offers the following five tips for safe driving over the holiday weekend and year-round:
- Plan a safe way home. Arrange a sober ride home, or offer to be the sober designated driver.
- Wear a seat belt. Seat belt usage is one of the best ways to stay safe on our roadways.
- Don’t call or text. Any form of impaired driving poses a serious threat to those on the road.
- Slow down. Respect all posted speed limits.
- Be aware. Pay attention to other drivers on the road and avoid those driving erratically.
