Colorado authorities will be stepping up their drunken driving enforcement during the Memorial Day weekend.
The Denver Post reports that the Colorado Department of Transportation is cracking down on DUI drivers with sobriety checkpoints from Friday through Tuesday. There will also be increased patrols in areas where DUIs are most likely to occur, including near bars and restaurants.
The increased enforcement is part of the department's "Heat is On" campaign, which is aimed at preventing people who have been drinking during the holiday from getting behind the wheel.
“Between 2007 and 2015, there were 67 traffic fatalities on Colorado roads during Memorial Day weekends,” said Darrell Lingk, Director of the Office of Transportation Safety at CDOT. “Of those 67 fatalities, an alarming 41 (61 percent) were alcohol related."
Friday also marks the first day of Checkpoint Colorado, a 100-day summer enforcement period under the campaign. That program will run through Labor Day weekend.
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