Drunk Driving Mobilization Largest Ever; Truckers to Assist Michigan Law Enforcement Officers During Upcoming Drunk Driving Crackdown

OAK PARK, Mich., June 26 -- When officers from 545 law enforcement agencies in Michigan head out for patrol June 27-July 13 during the national You Drink & Drive. You Lose. mobilization, they won't be alone. They will be joined by more than 900 truckers from five Michigan companies who will help identify possible drunk drivers, increasing the odds that those driving drunk or impaired will be stopped and arrested.

Lieutenant Colonel Peter Munoz, Commander of the Michigan State Police Uniform Services Bureau, introduced the new initiative today at a news conference at the Michigan State Police Metro North Post. Drivers from the following five companies are participating as "Night Owls":

  *  Central Transport, a general commodities trucking company in Warren;
  *  E&L Transport, a car hauler based in Wayne;

* Meijer, Inc., the number one midwest promotional supercenter, based in Grand Rapids;

* Sara Lee Taystee Bakery Group from its plant in Marquette; and

* Spartan Stores, a grocery/drugstore retailer and wholesale distributor based in Grand Rapids

Truckers from the "Night Owl" companies travel an average of four million miles in the state each month. Many operate at night and have first-hand experience with drunk drivers. The "Night Owls" will assist Michigan State Police troopers, sheriff's deputies and local police officers by identifying drivers who exhibit warning signs of possible drunk driving.

Truck drivers who spot suspected drunk drivers will call 9-1-1 to provide a vehicle description, license plate number, location and direction of travel as well as the driving behavior. Dispatchers will notify officers, based on their availability and proximity to the location.

"With the help of these companies and their drivers, we're putting drunk drivers on notice," Munoz said. "We encourage people who know they will be drinking to designate a sober driver or call a cab rather than risk spending the night in jail."

With the "Night Owls" on watch and police agencies on patrol, this is the largest, most aggressive drunk driving mobilization in Michigan's history. More than 80 percent of the state's law enforcement agencies are participating in this effort, a record number.

During the last national drunk-driving crackdown in December, Michigan law enforcement officers arrested more than 2,700 motorists for alcohol-related offenses despite an aggressive public information campaign and paid advertising.

In spite of the progress that has been made to reduce drunk driving, nearly 35 percent of all traffic fatalities in Michigan still involve alcohol and/or drugs. Studies by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) show that motorists are more likely to drive sober when patrols are combined with highly visible public awareness efforts.

The mobilization is part of an ongoing program to reduce drunk driving through regular alcohol saturation patrols. Funding provided by NHTSA allows the Michigan Office of Highway Safety Planning to support extra patrols in the state's high crash/high travel areas. Each week, drunk driving saturation patrols are conducted by some of the nearly 100 law enforcement agencies in the state participating in the program.

To further enforcement efforts, the state has four mobile blood-alcohol testing vans, or BATmobiles, that can be used to enhance the efficiency of drunk driving patrols. The BATmobiles are located in Holland, Lansing, Marquette and Monroe.