Traffic Payout

With New Year’s just two days away, this is a time when people take time to look back at what they’ve done over the past year and make resolutions to do things differently in the future. Most people resolve to go to the gym more, floss more often or to read more books instead of watching television. But why not making a resolution to be a safer and more responsible driver?

The AAA Foundation’s 2010 Traffic Safety Culture Index survey found that nine out of ten drivers agreed that people who drive after drinking alcohol are a very serious threat to their personal safety and even more people said that it was completely unacceptable for someone to drive when they may have drank too much. However, one in ten drivers also admitted to having driven when they thought their BAC was close to possibly over the legal limit. This “Do as I say, not as I do” attitude among drivers is something we can all help eliminate from our roadways this holiday season.

New Year’s in particular is recognized as a night prone to increased drunk driving and a recent analysis of NHTSA data found that in the past decade an average of 80 people have been killed in alcohol-related crashes on New Year’s Day. This is almost 150% higher when compared to the same day of the week during the weeks surrounding New Year’s. Every alcohol-related traffic death is preventable and it’s the responsibility of all drivers to make the right choice before getting behind the wheel. So on behalf of the AAA family, I’d like to call on all drivers to be safer and more responsible drivers in 2011. You can start by pledging to drive alcohol and drug free this holiday season.