News

Thanksgiving is a wonderful holiday, with a focus on food, family, and football. Nothing hits the spot like mashed potatoes and your weird Uncle’s bad jokes.

Sadly, Thanksgiving is also marked by one of the most dangerous days of the year to be on the road. The night before Thanksgiving is one for hometown reunions at all your local bars. While we fully support reuniting with old friends over a cold beer, we are also huge proponents of safe and responsible drinking.

In the past, we’ve compiled some tips for safe drinking, and even outlined Bud Light’s resource – the taxi app.

According to the Minnesota Department of Public Safety:

Last year 88 people were killed in Minnesota crashes involving a drunk driver, representing 62 fewer drunk driving deaths from a decade ago. Still, alcohol-related crashes account for nearly one-third of the state’s total traffic deaths annually. The drunk driving problem is underscored in that 25,258 Minnesotans were arrested for DWI in 2014. Last year, males accounted for 66 percent of the arrests and 39 percent of the offenders were people ages 20–29. The OTS annual report can be found on the Minnesota Impaired Driving Facts Page. 

 Key Findings in the 2014 report: 

• 361 people died in traffic crashes in Minnesota and 88 (24 percent) were in crashes involving drunk drivers.

• 2,040 people suffered injuries in alcohol-related crashes.

• 25,258 motorists were arrested for DWIs (an average of nearly 70 DWIs per day).

• 10,354 (41 percent) of these violators had at least one prior DWI.

• 1,316 (5 percent) of the DWIs were issued to drivers less than 21 years of age.

• 75 percent of motorists arrested for DWI resulted in a criminal conviction for driving while impaired; this percentage will increase as outstanding cases are settled in courts.

• One out of every seven licensed drivers in Minnesota has at least one DWI.

Recommendations to from the Minnesota Department of Public Safety to avoid becoming a statistic.

• Plan for a safe ride — designate a sober driver, take a cab/public transportation or stay at the location of the party.
• Offer to be a designated driver or be available to pick up a loved one anytime, anywhere.
• Buckle up — the best defense against a drunk driver.
• Report drunk driving — call 911 when witnessing impaired driving behavior. Be prepared to provide location, license plate number and observed dangerous behavior.