Drunk Driving Deaths on the Rise

MADD Calls Increase in Drunk Driving Fatalities Alarming; Urges the Country to Support High Visibility Enforcement

DALLAS, April 20 -- Statement for attribution to Glynn R. Birch, National President, Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD):

Today the country received distressing news with the release of new government statistics showing an increase in alcohol-related traffic deaths in 2005.

According to the preliminary Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS) data released earlier today by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), the number of alcohol-related traffic fatalities increased 1.7 percent from 16,694 in 2004 to 16,972 in 2005 -- the first increase since 2002.

It is painfully clear that our country's complacency about drunk driving is taking its toll in the loss of precious lives. Drunk driving is a 100% preventable crime. High visibility enforcement such as checkpoint and roving patrols are perhaps the single best way to bring these numbers down.

These disturbing numbers are further evidence of the need for an intensified effort to get drunk drivers off the road. Thanks to congressional action, it is likely that in the coming months the country will experience a higher level of drunk driving enforcement than we've seen in nearly 20 years.

MADD encourages all Americans to drive sober and support the efforts of law enforcement to keep our roads safe.