Law enforcement is increasing patrols across Colorado to target impaired drivers over the holiday season.
As part of The Heat Is On holiday campaign, 81 law enforcement agencies are working together on the enforcement initiative with increased sobriety checkpoints and saturation patrols.
As of November 1, there have been 168 traffic fatalities involving an impaired driver, up 14 percent from last year despite lower traffic volumes.
“The holidays should be a memorable time for our community, but not because it marks the loss of a loved one due to an impaired driving crash,” said Chief Matthew Packard, Colorado State Patrol.
“We will be actively looking for people who fail to plan for a sober ride after using drugs or alcohol.â€
Colorado Department of Transportation (CDOT) has also teamed up with Lyft and is offering free rides to get people home safely. $10 ride credits are being handed out to the first 200 customers every Thursday in December in cities where DUI fatalities were the highest in 2019.
In 2019, 171 people died in impairment-related crashes on Colorado roads, accounting for nearly one-third of Colorado’s traffic deaths.
During The Heat Is On holiday DUI enforcement period last year, 100 participating law enforcement agencies arrested 572 impaired drivers.
