NHTSA, USDOT Launch Security Campaigns for 2024 Thanksgiving Week – Security

Tens of millions will hit our nation’s roads this Thanksgiving week, desirous to spend time with household and buddies. It’s one of many 12 months’s busiest journey occasions, so what does this imply for fleet drivers on the clock throughout the holidays?

For one, it means sharing the highway with different motorists in a rush to get to their households for Thanksgiving. Nevertheless, touring on the highway throughout the holidays isn’t at all times a foul expertise for business fleets and commuters.

With sufficient time for preparation, you’ll be able to guarantee secure travels throughout the vacation. Celebrations begin the Wednesday earlier than Thanksgiving, alluding to a not too long ago developed nickname “Blackout Wednesday”, often known as “Drinksgiving”.

The Nationwide Freeway Visitors Security Administration (NHTSA) and the U.S. Division of Transportation have created a number of advert campaigns, truth sheets with speaking factors, press releases, and formatted social media texts that can be utilized to advertise highway security throughout the 2024 Thanksgiving week celebrations.

Buzzed Driving Is Drunk Driving

In the course of the Thanksgiving vacation weekend, NHTSA is working diligently to remind drivers that “Buzzed Driving Is Drunk Driving.” Their aim is to help visitors security advocates and to teach the general public on the risks and penalties of impaired driving. Learn the statistics under and assist unfold their lifesaving message:

• In 2022, 100 drivers had been concerned in deadly visitors crashes on Thanksgiving Eve (6 p.m. November 23 to five:59 a.m. November 24) and 184 fatalities throughout the Thanksgiving vacation interval (6 p.m. Wednesday to five:59 a.m. Monday).
• From 2018 to 2022, 479 drivers had been concerned in deadly visitors crashes on Thanksgiving Eve.
  • 30% (143) of these drivers concerned had been drunk, with a blood alcohol stage of .08 g/ dL or larger. 
• The 21-34 age group had the best proportion (38%) of drivers concerned in deadly drunk-driving crashes on Thanksgiving Eve from 2018-2022.
• Of all drunk drivers concerned in deadly visitors crashes that occurred on Thanksgiving Eve from 2018-2022, 109 had been males, and 25 had been females.
• From 2018-2022, over your entire Thanksgiving vacation, there have been 833 fatalities in visitors crashes that concerned at the least one driver or bike rider who was drunk.

Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over

Drunk driving endangers these behind the wheel, their passengers, and others on the highway. Legislation enforcement companions know the right way to spot an impaired driver and won’t hesitate to tug them over.

In the event you’re going to drink, plan for a sober experience. A number of choices can be found to impaired drivers to assist them get residence safely. These embody designating a sober driver, scheduling a taxi or rideshare service, or using the sober experience program supplied by their group.

The price of a experience house is a small worth to pay in comparison with the monetary and authorized penalties of a DUI or DWI, which may quantity to 1000’s of {dollars}.

Whereas the main focus of the NHTSA’s marketing campaign initiatives is to discourage impaired driving, officers can even problem citations and make arrests throughout visitors stops for the next: pace, working with no license, visitors signal/visitors gentle violations, seat belt violations, drug arrests, and felony arrests.

The aim of elevated legislation enforcement efforts throughout the vacation is not only to arrest impaired drivers. Their mission is to reinforce public security and forestall pointless tragedies by discouraging folks from making the damaging resolution to get behind the wheel whereas intoxicated.

When you’ve got a buddy who’s about to drink and drive, step in. Take the keys away and assist them get residence safely. Motorists are inspired to name 911 in the event that they encounter an impaired or unsafe driver on the highway.

Drinksgiving and Blackout Wednesday: A Pre-Vacation Phenomenon

Have you learnt about Drinksgiving? The Wednesday earlier than Thanksgiving is among the greatest bar nights of the 12 months. It’s comprehensible why this explicit day earlier than a vacation is an enormous night time for bars. Nearly all of People have the time without work on Thanksgiving.

Many return to their hometowns to go to households, and for faculty college students, it’s typically the primary time they’re again on the town since leaving for campus. The temptation to drink whereas seeing outdated buddies, attending a reunion, or gathering collectively is excessive.

The time period Blackout Wednesday comes from the blackouts or reminiscence loss that may consequence from binge consuming, outlined as 4 or extra drinks in succession for girls and 5 or extra drinks in succession for males.

How Alcohol Impacts Driving Capability

Regardless of how typically you devour alcohol, even one drink can have an effect on your driving capability; nonetheless, many drivers don’t perceive the impacts that an rising Blood Alcohol Focus (BAC) can have. Regardless of the authorized restrict in most states being 0.08, analysis exhibits that having a BAC at even 0.02 can have an effect on consideration and judgment.

The NHTSA outlines the consequences as such:

• .02 BAC – some lack of judgment, a decline in visible capabilities (like monitoring a shifting goal), and decreased multitasking capability.
• .05 BAC – lowered coordination, issue steering, and lowered alertness, inflicting a lowered emergency response.
• .08 BAC – short-term reminiscence loss, poor muscle coordination, impaired notion, and lowered data processing.
• .10 BAC – lowered capability to carry out primary driving duties like lane positioning and braking.
• .15 BAC – important automobile management impairment, inattentiveness, and decreased visible and auditory processing.

The primary secure driving tip for the most important consuming day of the 12 months is to not get behind the wheel when you’ve got been consuming. Analysis has proven {that a} driver with a BAC between .05 and .07 is 6 to 17 occasions extra prone to be killed in a single-vehicle accident than a driver with a .00 BAC.

The 2024 Alcohol-Impaired Driving marketing campaign will happen between Nov. 23-27, 2024. NHTSA encourages you to submit main as much as and together with Thanksgiving Eve whereas buddies are reuniting and collaborating in celebrations which will contain alcohol.

Beneath are some related hashtags to make use of when posting in regards to the marketing campaign:

• #BlackoutWednesday
• #HappyThanksgiving
• #BuzzedDriving
• #ImpairedDriving
• #Drinksgiving

By working with the NHTSA and their Blackout Wednesday Marketing campaign, we are able to share their social media playbook, which incorporates particular content material, belongings, and directions to handle drivers and encourage them to not drive impaired.

Whether or not you’re commuting for work throughout the vacation or celebrating Thanksgiving Eve, Drinksgiving, or Blackout Wednesday, communication efforts throughout this time of the 12 months might assist save lives.

For extra data, go to the NHTSA web site.

Buckle Up. Each Journey. Each Time.

Though vacation celebrations might convey impaired driving and extra harmful roadways, to assist fight deadly crashes, the NHTSA has a year-round social norming marketing campaign specializing in seat belt use.

In the course of the 2022 Thanksgiving vacation weekend alone (6 p.m. on Wednesday, November 23, to five:59 a.m. on Monday, November 28), there have been 326 passenger automobile occupants killed in visitors crashes throughout the nation, and 43% (141) had been unrestrained. 

No matter whether or not alcohol or drug-impaired driving was a think about these crashes, not sporting a seat belt proved to be lethal at any time of the day throughout the vacation weekend: 47% of these killed in nighttime crashes had been unbuckled, and 38% of these killed in daytime crashes additionally had been unbuckled. 

Keep in mind, one of many most secure selections drivers and passengers could make is to buckle up. Seat belts are one of the best protection towards impaired, aggressive, and distracted drivers.

Editor’s Word: This text was initially printed in November 2023 and was up to date on November 22, 2024, for continued relevancy on alcohol-impaired driving statistics and secure vacation driving habits.