Drunk driving crackdown

Published Aug 7, 2012 at 10:14 pm (Updated Aug 7, 2012)

HAMBURG � Law enforcement officers from the Hamburg Police Department will be cracking down on drunk drivers as part of the summer �Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over� campaign. Beginning Aug. 17 and running through Sept. 3, local and state law enforcement officers will conduct sobriety checkpoints and roving patrols, looking for motorists who may be driving while intoxicated.

�The police department received a grant for $4,400 to cover man hours for the police department to work extra shifts for enhanced enforcement and DUI detection,� Hamburg�s police director Wayne Yahm said at this past Monday night�s borough council meeting. The grant was made available by the Division of Highway Traffic Safety.

A concentrated national effort, the campaign helps to raise awareness about the dangers of drinking and driving � a problem which accounted for 20 percent of New Jersey�s motor vehicle fatalities in 2010. The program was launched in 1999 and works to combat drunk driving during some of the busiest travel times of the year, including the Labor Day holiday period. Yahm said that �this is a program we�ve participated in before and will continue this year and every year it�s made available to us.�

As part of the nationwide crackdown, The Hamburg Police Department offers the following advice:

Designate a driver who will stay sober before going out to drink.

Take mass transit or call a cab for a ride home.

Spend the night where the activity is held.

Report impaired drivers to law enforcement. New Jersey drivers can dial #77 to report drunk or aggressive drivers.

Always wear a safety belt.
It is also dangerous to travel on foot after drinking. The safest way to get home is to call a cab or call a sober friend for a ride.