CDOT offering 50% breathalyzer discounts to Coloradans with Do One Smart Thing campaign
As summer winds down, law enforcement agencies across the state are prepared to crack down on impaired driving in the weeks before Labor Day and through the holiday weekend. The Colorado Department of Transportation (CDOT), Colorado State Patrol (CSP) and local law agencies are teaming up as part of The Heat Is On campaign to conduct a nearly three-week DUI enforcement period from Aug. 16 through Sept. 3.
The annual Labor Day DUI enforcement period will include 85 law enforcement agencies. During last year’s Labor Day enforcement, 936 impaired drivers were arrested.
As part this year’s The Heat Is On campaign, CDOT has again partnered with BACtrack, a leading personal and professional breathalyzer company, to urge Coloradans to check their blood-alcohol content (BAC) and confirm they are sober before they drive. Through the partnership, BACtrack breathalyzers will be offered at a 50% discount exclusively for Colorado residents through September, or while supplies last. Residents can visit codot.bactrack.com to place an order.
“This initiative makes an important resource available to Coloradans to help people make safe and educated decisions,” said Shoshana Lew, executive director of CDOT. “Choosing when to get behind the wheel can be a life or death decision and education about impaired driving — along with enforcement — is a key part of keeping roads safe.”
CDOT’s Labor Day enforcement period and DUI-prevention campaign support CDOT’s Whole System — Whole Safety initiative to reduce traffic injuries and deaths. Last year, there were 209 passenger vehicle fatalities on Colorado roads involving impaired drivers, accounting for more than one-third of all traffic fatalities. Forty-four people were killed in crashes involving impaired drivers last August and September, accounting for more than 20% of the impaired driving fatality total last year.
The partnership between CDOT and BACtrack started in 2016. The shared goal is to raise awareness of personal breathalyzer use as a reliable DUI-prevention tool to decrease the number of impaired drivers on the roads.
“Nobody should feel out of place in any situation when using a personal breathalyzer to check their BAC level,” said Keith Nothacker, founder and CEO of BACtrack. “Our goal, in partnership with CDOT, is to normalize breathalyzer usage and provide Coloradans with resources to keep all drivers and passengers safe. We’re excited to continue our partnership with CDOT and continue to lead the way in normalizing breathalyzer usage in Colorado."
CDOT’s Do One Smart Thing campaign aims to encourage Coloradans to drive sober. Do One Smart Thing takes a humorous approach by tapping into a universal truth — we have all done something stupid after a few drinks. Texting an ex, breaking out embarrassing dance moves or maybe hot tubbing in your business suit. But the dumbest thing someone can do is get behind the wheel of a car when they’re impaired. Do One Smart Thing ads are visible across Denver on posters and bus tails, in-bar coasters, mirror and door clings, as well as radio, digital banners, and social media ads. To view the campaign creative, visit http://bit.ly/DoOneSmartThing.
CDOT’s partnership with BACtrack is the first and only partnership of its kind in the country between a breathalyzer company and a state department of transportation. This program is also supported by the Foundation for Advanced Alcohol Responsibility. The Foundation brings more then 25 years of leadership in the fight against drunk driving and underage drinking.
ABOUT THE HEAT IS ON
The CDOT Highway Safety Office provides funding to Colorado law enforcement for impaired driving enforcement, education and awareness campaigns. The Heat Is On campaign runs throughout the year, with 16 specific high-visibility impaired driving enforcement periods centered on national holidays and large public events. Enforcement periods can include sobriety checkpoints, saturation patrols and additional law enforcement on duty dedicated to impaired driving enforcement. Find more details about the campaign, including impaired driving enforcement plans, arrest totals and safety tips at HeatIsOnColorado.com.
WHOLE SYSTEM – WHOLE SAFETY
To heighten safety awareness, CDOT recently announced its Whole System – Whole Safety initiative. This project takes a systematic statewide approach to safety combining the benefits of CDOT’s programs that address driving behaviors, our built environment and the organization's operations. The goal is to improve the safety of Colorado’s transportation network by reducing the rate and severity of crashes and improving safety conditions for those traveling by all transportation modes. The program has one simple mission - to get everyone home safely.
ABOUT CDOT
CDOT has approximately 3,000 employees located throughout Colorado and manages more than 23,000 lane miles of highway and 3,429 bridges. CDOT also manages grant partnerships with a range of other agencies, including metropolitan planning organizations, local governments and airports. It also administers Bustang, the state-owned and operated interregional express service. Gov. Jared Polis has charged CDOT to further build on the state’s intermodal mobility options.
