Law enforcement agencies in Kansas will be involved in a stepped-up enforcement campaign over the next two weeks, into the Labor Day weekend.   It will be the combined annual “Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over” and “If You Feel Different, You Drive Different” campaigns.    The effort is part of the ongoing “Drive To Zero” campaign to warn drivers of the risks of driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs.

Kansas Department of Transportation Behavioral Safety Manager Gary Herman and other officials spoke at a kickoff event in Wichita on Wednesday.   Law enforcement agencies will have extra officers on patrol and the Kansas Highway Patrol will have extra troopers involved in the enforcement effort from August 20th through September 6th.

Herman said over 19 percent of all Kansas fatalities in 2020 were alcohol-related, and about 30 percent of all crashes in the United States involve drunk drivers.   He said a key message for the upcoming Labor Day weekend will be “If you make plans to go out, make plans to get home.”

Kansas Highway Patrol Trooper Chad Crittenden and Wichita Police Sergeant Brian Mock said fatal crashes have an impact on families, on officers and on first responders.   They are urging people who see an impaired driver to notify authorities so they can get the driver off the street.

Bob Recchio of the DUI Victims Center of Kansas was injured and his wife, Yvonne, was killed when they were hit by a drunk driver in 2019.   He said people need to understand the importance of making the right decision, “thinking about the impact that you’ll have on somebody else’s family, let alone the impact you could have on your own family if you’re not there anymore.”