ANTELOPE VALLEY – Starting Thursday, the California Highway Patrol will conduct a 10-month enhanced enforcement effort on state Route 14 to reduce the number of people killed and injured in collisions due to driving under the influence of alcohol or illegal drugs.
“Making sure California’s roadways are a safe place for all motorists is a giant step toward accomplishing our goal of saving lives,” said Captain Steve Urrea, commander of CHP’s Antelope Valley Area. “By removing impaired drivers from the road we’re headed in the right direction.”
From 2007 to 2009 there were 13 people killed and 258 others seriously injured as a result of alcohol-involved collisions on Highway 14 between Newhall and Lancaster in Los Angeles County.
CHP’s 10-month enhanced enforcement campaign, dubbed Arrive Alive, starts Dec. 1, 2011 and continues through Sept. 30, 2012.
During that time, CHP officers will enforce all traffic laws with a special emphasis on apprehending drivers under the influence of alcohol and/or drugs, drivers caught speeding, and drivers making unsafe passes or improper turns.
Additionally, officers will be cracking down on drivers caught texting while driving and strictly enforcing the use of seat belts and child safety seats.
CHP officers from the Antelope Valley area are continuing their Highway 14 DUI Corridor Task Force efforts and collaborating with regional law enforcement agencies to provide enhanced anti-DUI enforcement roving patrols within their jurisdictions on Highway 14 in Los Angeles County.
“We’re confident this anti-DUI campaign will help to increase awareness and prevent collisions or additional loss of life resulting from impaired driving,” said Urrea.
Funding for the “Arrive Alive Sober Driving Coalition IV” project is provided by a grant awarded by the California Office of Traffic Safety through the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
(Information via press release from the California Highway Patrol.)