Fall and winter DUI enforcements ramp up to curb impaired driving during holidays

The holiday season usually sees a spike in impaired driving arrests and fatalities. To combat this, CDOT, the Colorado State Patrol and local law enforcement are kicking off the first of three holiday DUI enforcements — Thanksgiving, Holiday Parties and New Year’s Eve — with the Thanksgiving enforcement Nov. 17-30.

The Halloween Weekend enforcement period saw 116 arrests across 76 participating agencies. Agencies with the highest arrests were the Colorado Springs Police Department (22), the Denver Police Department (19), the Lakewood Police Department (12) and the Larimer County Sherriff’s Office (8). The previous Fall Festivals enforcement — the longest of the year — saw 1,324 arrests across 78 participating agencies.

In addition to DUI enforcement, CDOT will launch its “Nothing Uglier than a DUI” ugly holiday sweater campaign on Dec. 1. The campaign asks Coloradans to don seasonal sweaters and redeem available Lyft ride credit to get to and from their destinations safely. Credits will be available from Dec. 1 to Jan. 3. The promotion coincides with two CDOT statewide high-visibility DUI enforcement efforts — the Holiday Parties and New Year’s Eve enforcement periods.