DUI Crackdown Kicks Off Across Tampa Bay, State

TAMPA BAY, FL — Tampa Bay area residents with big party plans over the next few weeks will want to think twice before getting behind the wheel impaired. The Florida Highway Patrol and law enforcement agencies across the region have announced their intentions to take part in the national Driver Sober or Get Pulled Over campaign.

The national crackdown on impaired driving kicked off Aug. 19 and continues through Labor Day, Sept. 5.

“Drinking and driving is deadly,” Col. Gene S. Spaulding, the highway patrol’s director, said in a statement. “If you drink, be responsible and designate a sober driver or make arrangements to get to your destination safely.”

The campaign is scheduled each year to coincide with the Labor Day holiday. The highway patrol says all of its uniformed personnel, including those normally assigned to administrative duties, will hit the road to patrol all interstates and major roads in the state during the upcoming holiday. Motorists can also count on an increased presence leading up to the three-day weekend courtesy of the patrol and other local law enforcement agencies taking part in the multi-week effort.

“The choice to drink and drive is a bad decision that can have grave consequences,” Spaulding warned. “Be responsible and don’t drink and drive.”

Florida was recently ranked as the 14th toughest state in the country on DUIs, according to a WalletHub study.

Motorists who encounter aggressive or impaired drivers are urged to call the highway patrol at *FHP from their mobile phones.

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