Very sobering facts about drunk driving from Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD):
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Every day in America, 29 people die as a result of drunk driving crashes - one every 50 minutes.
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Every day, about 800 people are injured in a drunk driving crash - one every 2 minutes.
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57% of fatally injured drivers had alcohol and/or other drugs in their system - 17% had both.
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Drugs other than alcohol (e.g., marijuana and cocaine) are involved in about 18% of motor vehicle driver deaths.
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Drunk driving costs the United States $132 billion a year.
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An average drunk driver has driven drunk 80 times before first arrest.
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About one-third of all drivers arrested or convicted of drunk driving are repeat offenders.
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Only time will sober a person up. Drinking strong coffee, exercising or taking a cold shower will not help.
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2017 Statistics:
- In fatal crashes, the highest percentage of drunk drivers was for drivers ages 21 to 24 (27 percent), followed by ages 25 to 34 (26 percent) and 35 to 44 (23 percent).
- 9 percent of all drivers involved in fatal crashes during the day were drunk, compared to 32 percent at night.
- 15 percent of all drivers involved in fatal crashes during the week were drunk, compared to 28 percent on weekends.
- Three times as many males were arrested for drunk driving as females (569,148 v 195,421).
- A total of 1,147 children 14 and younger were killed in motor vehicle traffic crashes. Of those 1,147 fatalities, 220 (19%) occurred in alcohol-impaired-driving crashes. Out of those 220 deaths, 118 (54%) were occupants of vehicles with drivers who had BACs of .08 or higher, and another 29 children (13%) were pedestrians or pedal-cyclists struck by drivers with BACs of .08 or higher. 71 (32%) were occupants of other vehicles, and 2 (1%) were drivers.
Information courtesy of Mothers Against Drunk Driving - MADD
https://www.madd.org/statistics/