Fall DUI enforcement results in 1398 arrests

STATEWIDE — The Colorado Department of Transportation (CDOT), Colorado State Patrol (CSP) and local law agencies statewide teamed up to conduct the Fall Fest heightened DUI enforcement period from Sept. 11 –Oct.28, resulting in 1398 DUI arrests. This is a decrease from the 1,534 arrests made during the same period last year.

"While the numbers of arrests have reduced, impaired crashes remain in the top three causal factors for fatal and injury crashes in Colorado for 2020,” said Matthew Packard, Chief of the Colorado State Patrol. “We should never forget that every single injury and death caused by impaired driving are preventable. It's all too easy to forget that statistics refer to real people. We will continue to look for impaired drivers who choose to put lives in danger on Colorado roads.”

A total of 95 agencies participated in the 48-day DUI enforcement period, with the Colorado Springs Police Department (191 arrests), Denver Police Department (141 arrests), and El Paso County Sheriff’s Office (86 arrests) recording the highest number of arrests. The Colorado State Patrol made 150 arrests. Results for all law enforcement agencies across the state can be found at https://www.codot.gov/safety/traffic-safety-reporting-portal.

“Safety on Colorado’s roadways isn’t just CDOT’s goal — it should be a focus for every single person on the road,” said Darrell Lingk, CDOT director of the Office of Transportation. “We all want to make it home safely to our loved ones, so we encourage everyone not to jeopardize that by driving impaired.”

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.

Personal breathalyzers can keep drivers safe by informing them of their BAC and how long to wait until they are sober. Currently Colorado residents can purchase a personal breathalyzer through BACtrack for 20% off by going to codot.bactrack.com.  The offer expires Nov. 30.

Learn more about CDOT’s dedication to keeping Colorado roads safe, including impaired driving enforcement objectives, arrest data and safety information at codot.gov/safety. 

WHOLE SYSTEM. WHOLE SAFETY.  

In early 2019, CDOT announced its Whole System — Whole Safety initiative to heighten safety awareness. This initiative 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 the safety of all transportation modes. The program has one simple mission—to get everyone home safely.

ABOUT CDOT

CDOT has approximately 3,000 employees located at its Denver headquarters and in regional offices 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. Polis has charged CDOT to further build on the state’s intermodal mobility options.