MADD suggests ways you can help prevent drunk driving

After two major traffic accidents Thursday, and a deadly neighborhood crash last week, where alcohol was believed to be a factor in the death and injury of four family members, including a newborn, the conversation about how to stop drunk driving has reached a peak.

A group that’s spent much time concerning itself with the question of how to stop people from driving drunk says there are things everyone can do to help combat the problem.

Amy Ezzo, with Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD), says monitoring your own behavior and educating those around you is very important. Ezzo advises taking a look at what you, your family, and friends find permissible when it comes to driving under the influence of alcohol. She encourages people to step in and make sure those around them are not hitting the road drunk.

A big part of not driving drunk, she says, is planning ahead. Once alcohol comes into play, Ezzo says your ability to make a good decision can be impacted, so if you know you’ll be consuming alcohol, you should make transportation decisions and arrangements ahead of time.

Making young people aware of the dangers of drunk driving is also important, says Ezzo.

“They’re among one of the highest populations in terms of drunk driving that we’re concerned about. We want to make sure that message is getting to our younger audience,” says Ezzo.

“I’d love to say that everybody knows not to drink and drive, but if that was the case, we wouldn’t have traffic fatalities and serious injuries due to impaired driving.”

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