With the Labor Day holiday approaching, the New York State Police, St. Lawrence County Sheriff’s Office and local law enforcement agencies are stepping up DWI enforcement efforts on impaired driving.

The statewide STOP-DWI Crackdown efforts start on Aug. 14 and will end on Sept. 2.

Research shows that high-visibility enforcement can reduce impaired driving fatalities by as much as 20 percent. Sobriety checkpoints play a key part in raising awareness about the problem. The crackdown is funded by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) with a grant from the New York State Governor’s Traffic Safety Committee to the New York State STOP-DWI Foundation.

Approximately one-third of all traffic crash fatalities in the United States involve drunk drivers (with blood alcohol concentrations [BACs] of .08 of higher). According to the NHTSA, in every state, it’s illegal to drive with a BAC of .08 or higher, yet one person was killed in a drunk-driving crash every 48 minutes in the United States in 2017.

“There will be no warnings,” said Michele James, St. Lawrence County STOP-DWI. “Our message is simple—Don’t drink or drug and drive. Have a plan to get home safely. Don’t drive, get a ride. Violators will lose their licenses; pay increased insurance rates, fines, surcharges and DMV fees; and may have an ignition interlock device installed in their vehicle. Driving impaired is not worth it.”