December 26, 2013

The holidays are in full swing! Unfortunately, the weeks between Thanksgiving and New Year’s Day are too often filled with serious and sometimes deadly motor vehicle accidents. The Philadelphia Car Accident Lawyers with Lundy Law point out that many of these accidents could be prevented if motorists refrained from consuming alcohol before getting behind the wheel.

Deputy executive director of the Governor’s Highway Safety Association (GHSA), Jonathan Adkins, explains that last year, more than 10,300 individuals lost their lives in drunk driving accidents—a more than 4 percent increase from the previous year’s total. In an effort to reduce the number of such accidents during the holidays this year, many law enforcement agencies are participating in the GHSA’s “Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over” program.

According to an article from Health Day News, the program aims to prevent drunk driving by increasing the volume of officers patrolling for offenders and coordinates with saturation patrols and sobriety checkpoints. The program was launched December 13 and will run through New Year’s Day.

The GHSA is also working to develop technology that can be installed in vehicles to detect motorists’ blood alcohol levels through touch or breath and prevent vehicles from staring if a driver is impaired.

In the meantime, the Philadelphia Personal Injury Lawyers with Lundy Law encourage citizens to stay safe by using designated drivers or cabs to get home if they have consumed any amount of alcohol.