Last year, 4,019 people were killed between the Thanksgiving and New Year's holidays. Almost 39 percent of those traffic crashes were deemed to be alcohol related.  The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, which regularly collects and disseminates a variety of crash-related information, recently announced their analysis of 2002 data.  It identified some troubling facts:

• In 2002, motor vehicle crashes were the leading cause of death for people from age 2 to 33.
• 41 percent of the fatalities (17,419) resulted from crashes in which it was determined that alcohol was present.
• More than 15,000 people (86 percent), were killed in crashes in which it was determined that at least one of the drivers was legally intoxicated (a blood-alcohol level of 0.08 or higher was found).
• Drivers 21 to 24 years old were most likely to be intoxicated (BAC of 0.08 g/dl or greater) in fatal crashes in 2002. Thirty-three percent of drivers 21 to 24 years old involved in fatal crashes were intoxicated, followed by ages 25 to 34 (28 percent) and 35 to 44 (26 percent).
• NHTSA studies report the ominous fact that almost 3 of every 10 Americans will be involved in an alcohol-related crash at some time in their lives.

It is quite clear that absent law enforcement's actions (some 1.5 million arrests were made in 2002) to detect and arrest impaired drivers, many more people would have been injured or killed on our highways. Clearly, this is a problem we can positively influence through our collective and concerted efforts.

Therefore, with the holiday season still fresh on our minds, I encourage each of you to make education, prevention and alcohol-related traffic enforcement a priority in your respective communities. Your leadership in combating impaired driving is appreciated and will have a profound impact on the safety of our motoring public.

Happy Holidays.

Paul G. Rumbley