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SaferRide is available for free through iTunes or Google Play and is quick and easy to set up.
“In the absence of a prior plan, having an app like this can help make a potential life-saving difference at decision time when the party is winding down,” Division of Highway Traffic Safety Acting Director Gary Poedubicky said. “Any option that gives an alcohol-impaired person a safe way home is a useful tool.”
Remember: It might not take as much alcohol as you think to impair your driving — or get you arrested.
Consuming even small amounts of alcohol dulls the senses, decreases reaction time and hampers judgment, vision and alertness. No matter how little you drink, you can still be convicted of DWI — not based on your breath or blood but on what an officer observes and how you do on a field sobriety test.
And there will be more than enough law enforcement officers out and about tomorrow night into New Year’s morning.
Sixteen local police departments in Bergen County and the Palisades Interstate Parkway Police got $7,500 each from the state to combat drunk and impaired driving as part of the “Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over” campaign, which continues through Friday.
The money goes to “saturation patrols and high-visibility sobriety checkpoints,” Poedubicky said.
A state-fueled crackdown last year produced 1,575 DWI arrests in roughly a month — more than 50 a day in NJ.
Participating police agencies issued 4,728 speeding summonses and 3,269 seat belt summonses — and took into custody 2,043 fugitives or people wanted on warrants.
Penalties for a first DWI conviction include a fine of up to $500 and a one-year driver’s license suspension. Violators can also expect auto insurance surcharges of several thousand dollars.
“Drunk driving isn’t a victimless crime. You could kill yourself or someone else and face severe legal penalties,” Poedubicky said.
Last year, statistics show, 22% of all motor vehicle fatalities in New Jersey were alcohol-related.
Nationally, more than 10,000 people die each year in drunk-driving crashes, which costs an estimated $37 billion annually.
“This is a critical law enforcement program that can save lives during a time of the year when impaired driving traditionally increases by nearly 10 percent,” Ridgewood Police Chief John Ward said. “This initiative brings attention to the serious consequences of drunk driving and the grave danger those who choose to drink and drive pose to all who share the road with them.”
“It might not take as much alcohol as you think [to impair judgment],” Poedubicky said. “So the safest approach is to only drive sober. If you plan on drinking at a holiday party, bar, or restaurant, let someone else do the driving – a sober friend, a taxi or public transportation.”
The participating Bergen “Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over” police agencies:
Bogota
Closter
East Rutherford
Elmwood Park
Englewood
Garfield
Glen Rock
Hackensack
Hillsdale
Mahwah
Montvale
New Milford
Ridgewood
River Vale
South Hackensack
Woodcliff Lake
Palisades Interstate Parkway Police
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•If you plan to drink, designate a driver before you go out who will not drink alcohol;
•Take mass transit, a taxi or ask a sober friend to drive you home;
•Spend the night where the activity is held;
•Report impaired drivers to law enforcement (dial #77);
•Always buckle up, every ride, regardless of your seating position in the vehicle. It’s your best defense against an impaired driver;
•If you’re intoxicated and traveling on foot, the safest way to get home is to take a cab or have a sober friend or family member drive you to your doorstep.
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