Safety officials want to encourage Coloradans to
play it safe and plan ahead for a sober ride if they intend to celebrate with alcohol this July 4 th holiday weekend.
Free light rail and taxi cab vouchers will be distributed in Denver as an incentive to leave the car at home and enjoy safe transportation after the festivities.
"The 4 th of July is a busy time for Colorado residents to enjoy the holiday in a number of ways," said Colonel Mark Trostel, Chief of the Colorado State Patrol. "Whether you're driving a motorcycle, boating on the reservoir, coming back from a picnic or meeting friends at the park, you should never get behind the wheel if you've been drinking. If you drink and drive, you will be arrested. Make the responsible decision to obey traffic laws, always buckle up and never take the party on the road."
Over the Fourth of July weekend, the Colorado Department of Transportation's (CDOT) street teams will distribute more than
650 light rail vouchers to the public before the July 3 rd and 4 th Rockies fireworks games at Coors Field, which draw thousands of baseball fans and firework spectators to the lower downtown Denver (LoDo) area. The light rail vouchers are valid only between 10 p.m. and 2 p.m. during the enforcement period only, from July 3 to 7.
In addition, CDOT has partnered up with MillerCoors on its new Corporate Responsibility campaign
"You Hold The Key, Never Drive Drunk", which willmake $10 taxi vouchers available to the public in downtown Denver. MillerCoors street teams will hand out
1,000 Yellow Cab taxi vouchers at participating bars and establishments in Denver, as well as at a tented cab stand located at 19 th Street and Wynkoop Street. The cab vouchers are valid only between July 3 and 7.
"MillerCoors is pleased to partner with CDOT on a call-to-action that reminds consumers to plan ahead," said Bill Young, director, U.S. alcohol responsibility, MillerCoors. "Leave the car at home, and enjoy the celebration knowing that you can grab a Yellow Cab on us, take public transportation or call a designated driver at the end of the day."
Law enforcement agencies across the state will be increasing DUI patrols, saturation patrols and conducting sobriety checkpoints to keep impaired drivers off state roadways and reservoirs during the long weekend.
Forty-fourlocal agencies, Colorado State Parks and the Colorado State Patrol (CSP) will participate in the increased enforcement period as part of the
Heat Is On campaign, starting at 6 p.m. on Thursday, July 3 and ending at 3 a.m. on Monday, July 7.
The last time that July 4 th fell on a Friday was in 2003 when 12 traffic fatalities were reported during that holiday period, eight of which were alcohol-related. Last year, July 4 th fell on a Wednesday night and there were six traffic deaths and two of the deaths involved alcohol. Last year's DUI enforcement period was seven days, resulting in 640 DUI arrests.