Zooming Safely in the New Year

A new two year study shows that injuries and fatalities due to alcohol-related accidents have been on a decline in Washington suburbs.

New year's eve remains the most dangerous night for drinking driving clashes, so the government has provided various safety measures to ensure that there is a decline in accidents. Police encourage New Year's Eve revelers who have been drinking to call sober ride - 1-800-200-TAXI - a free taxi service that has been offered each evening since December 8.

The police informed that the dangers of 'driving while drinking' are being publicized by means of educational campaigns. "New technologies that will enable a steering wheel to detect blood alcohol content through a driver's skin are on the horizon", they informed.

"We now think it is possible to eliminate drunk driving," said Mike Green, executive director of Mothers Against Drunk Driving Northern Virginia. "People are learning that they can't drink and drive."

In a report released last year, the Washington Regional Alcohol Program revealed that fatalities in North Virginia has dropped by nearly 41.3%, and 22.6% in suburban Maryland, which includes Montgomery and Prince George's counties.

However, statistics for 2006 are yet not available.

The study also found that fatalities due to drunk-driving has increased in the District, but police Lt. Byron Hope strongly believes that it can be completely eliminated, citing the use of latest technology.

"Just think back 30, 40 years," said Hope, of the police force's traffic safety and specialized enforcement branch. "What technology did we have to solve this problem? Back then, we had breathing instruments, and that was it. Now, we have things we can put in cars to proactively combat this problem."

The Federal Statistics show that deaths on New Year's eve is still on a high, and various steps need to be taken by the police to curb this. For this purpose, police throughout the region are keeping extra checks and mounting extra patrols in order to "keep the situation under control".

"We'll be in saturation mode," said Cpl. Kenneth Musgrave of the Montgomery County Police Department, which will flood major streets with 16 extra officers working three hours later than the normal 5 p.m.-to-3 a.m. shift".

"Officers will watch for drivers who speed, drive aggressively, go too slowly, pass through red lights or are unable to stay within lanes". "Just bad driving is what we're looking for," Musgrave said.

Sgt. Russell Newell, a state police spokesman, informed that all the troopers who are normally assigned with desk work, will be on duty in the fields on December 31, and will keep an eagle's eye on drivers driving drunk. He also informed that the police will set up various sobriety checkpoints.

In Northern Virginia, Prince William County police will operate sobriety checkpoints on the county's east and west ends. The police said that they want people to enjoy and have a great time on New Year's eve, but they do not want them to drive drunk, which is the main cause of many injuries and fatalities.

Loudoun County will shift deputies to focus on major roads, such as Routes 7, 28 and 50. Sheriff's spokesman Kraig Troxell said that in order to go to any part of the county, people will have to take any of these routes, and the police patrolling will be extra vigilant to catch hold of the offenders.

"In the District, 15 to 20 traffic safety officers will supplement the seven police districts, whose commanders might decide to operate spontaneous DUI checkpoints," Hope said.

Hope also said that the police will not only catch hold of people who are drunk, but also those who behave "stupid", yelling and waving their hands out of the windows, throwing objects, etc. He said, "You can have a good time, but don't disrespect anyone else."

Many steps have been taken to eliminate drunk-driving completely. Aggressive enforcement of DUI laws in recent years, including Checkpoint Strikeforce, an initiative in Virginia, Maryland and several other states to raise public awareness of drunken driving, has helped decline in drunk-driving. Virginia is spending about $1 million a year on the program, which includes radio and televisions ads and increased sobriety checkpoints.

With the spread of education and strict checking, technology has also joined in the fight. The drunk drivers have been ordered to put ignition interlock devices in their cars. When the driver breathes, this device checks the blood-alcohol level, and if it is too high, the vehicle does not start.

Gill Cochran, an Annapolis lawyer, however, is still skeptical about the whole thing. He said that no doubt hardcore measures are being taken, but there are some people like experimenting college students and excessive alcohol drinkers who will pose a problem.

"If they say there's a big dip in fatalities, I say, well, 'Whoopie,' " Cochran said. "Any time we have a dip, that's good, but I'm a little frightened about what happens next year."