DELAWARE OFFICE OF HIGHWAY SAFETY LAUNCHES

“BE ALERT AND ARRIVE ALIVE” CAMPAIGN DURING

NATIONAL DISTRACTED DRIVING AWARENESS MONTH

Integrated campaign strategy leverages the reach and influence of Delaware businesses, community partners, and law enforcement to maximize distracted driving awareness 

DOVER, Del. (April 8, 2021) — The Delaware Office of Highway Safety (OHS) is leveraging the momentum of National Distracted Driving Awareness Month (April) to launch the new “Be Alert and Arrive Alive” campaign focused on motivating Delawareans to stop activities behind the wheel that contribute to one of the leading causes of crashes in the state. According to the most recent data available from the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration (NHTSA), distracted driving resulted in 3,142 fatalities nationwide in 2019, a ten percent increase from 2018 indicating that distracted driving is a growing traffic safety problem.  Distracted driving is as dangerous, if not more dangerous, than drinking and driving. A NHTSA study found that texting while driving is six times more likely to cause a crash than driving under the influence. While the campaign aims to motivate safer behavior among all drivers, OHS is specifically targeting a significant population of distracted driving offenders: males ages 16 to 24 in urban and rural areas of the state. To further gain the attention of this critical audience, communications will focus on putting the dangers of distracted driving and drunk driving on equal footing. But make no mistake: It isn’t just young people who are driving distracted, since drivers in other age groups don’t lag far behind.

“By driving distracted, you’re losing valuable seconds that you may need to avoid a close call or deadly crash,” said Kimberly Chesser, Director, Delaware Office of Highway Safety. “Unfortunately, many people don’t consider distracted driving anywhere near as dangerous as drinking and driving. But OHS wants to correct this misconception to drive home the point of this campaign and help people realize just how serious distracted driving is. The number of distractions is growing all the time, and the consequences of both impaired driving and smartphone use behind the wheel can result in deaths and serious injuries.”

The OHS distracted driving campaign will correspond with two special enforcement periods (April 2–22 and July 15–Aug. 19) being implemented by state and local law enforcement in 2021. OHS is collaborating with several businesses such as cellphone providers, mechanics and gas/convenience stores, and community partners to help deliver the distracted driving awareness message to the public and deliver key messaging directly to the targeted young-male audience. OHS’s campaign strategy will utilize a comprehensive list of communications tactics including digital advertising, paid and organic social media, public relations, grassroots outreach, and the creation of communication toolkits for partnering businesses and organizations. Also, if pandemic guidelines allow, OHS hopes to engage safely with Delawareans at public events during the summer enforcement period.

“Now more than ever, we are faced every day with choices. Some are simple, some more complex. The choices you make when you get in your vehicle should be easy. Make a conscious effort to put your phone down and buckle up when you’re ready to drive. By making this choice, you are choosing to protect yourself and those you care about,” Sarah Cattie, Distracted Driving Program Manager, Delaware Office of Highway Safety.

2020 Distracted Driving Delaware Statistics*

• 37% of drivers involved in distracted driving crashes were between the ages of 20 and 29, with 63% of those being males.
• 43% of distracted driving crashes resulted in injuries; 12 distracted-driving-related deaths occurred resulting in 11% of the overall fatalities for 2020.
• Distracted driving crashes occurred most often between the hours of 2 p.m. and 5 p.m. with Saturday having the highest number of crashes.
• It takes your brain 13 seconds before it refocuses on the road after looking at a cellphone.
• If a person takes their eyes off the road for just 5 seconds while driving at just 30 mph, the vehicle will travel approximately 75 yards in an unsafe “distracted” situation.

*Please note, there are pending investigations for 2020 and these are not final statistics for 2020. They are generated from the most recent data available at the time of this press release.

OHS encourages drivers to use the 5-Second Rule Tool, available here, to help them visualize how far their vehicle will travel at any given speed during “just a glance” at a cellphone, radio display, GPS, etc.

Distractions to Avoid

• Texting or talking on a handheld phone (including speakerphone)
• Searching for items in a purse or wallet
• Checking the GPS
• Watching a crash on the side of the road
• Changing the radio or music selection
• Talking with passengers
• Reaching for an item that has fallen on the floor

According to OHS, the best rule to follow is to prepare everything, from silencing your cellphone to adjusting temperature levels, seat position, and mirrors before getting behind the wheel or starting the engine to prevent distracting temptations.

Key Enforcement Locations

OHS will fund distracted driving enforcement across the state during the special enforcement periods.  An emphasis will be placed on the key locations listed below.

• DE-4 Newark/Christiana area (between Marrows Road and DE-58)
• US-40 Bear area (between DE-72 and DE-7)
• DE-24 Laurel area (between Shiloh Church Road and Curley Drive)
• Georgetown (town limits)
• DE-1 Lewes/Rehoboth area (DE-1/Wescoats Road between Savannah Road and Rehoboth Avenue split)

For more information on the campaign, statistics, and education on eliminating distracted driving risks, visit ArriveAliveDE.com/Be-Alert/. 

About the Delaware Office of Highway Safety
The Office of Highway Safety (OHS) is committed to improving the safety of Delaware’s motoring public by focusing on behavioral traffic safety issues, such as impaired driving, seat belt use, speeding, child passenger safety, pedestrian and bicycle safety, motorcycle safety, and teen driving issues. Follow the Delaware Office of Highway Safety on ArriveAliveDE.com, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Snapchat.

High Visibility Enforcement Against Impaired Driving Scheduled for
March 11-21 in Maryland and Delaware Along US 13 and US 113

DOVER, DE (March 12, 2021) – This year St. Patrick’s Day may look a little different as Delaware continues to stress social distancing and COVID-19 precautions. But for those planning to celebrate with family and friends, the Delaware Office of Highway Safety, Maryland Department of Transportation Motor Vehicle Administration’s (MDOT MVA) Highway Safety Office, and local law enforcement want to make sure they stay safe by driving sober or making a plan for a sober ride home.

For the fourth year, more than 20 transportation and law enforcement agencies from Delaware and Maryland will conduct saturation patrols and sobriety checkpoints along the 145 miles of US 13 (Ocean Highway) and nearly 75 miles of US 113 (Worcester Highway) on the Delmarva Peninsula beginning Thursday, March 11, and continuing through Sunday, March 21. St. Patrick’s Day is Wednesday, March 17.

In Delaware, the Office of Highway Safety (OHS) will also partner with additional agencies statewide for this year’s high visibility enforcement focused along the US 13 corridor. Last year during the St. Patrick’s Day holiday period, a total of 102 arrests for impaired driving were made statewide in Delaware.

Coinciding with high-visibility enforcement efforts, Delaware’s Office of Highway Safety will share the Be Driven Not to Drive campaign through a variety of platforms throughout the state including billboards, English and Spanish print media, social media platforms, music streaming services, and television/online streaming services. The campaign combines visible tactics with a publicity strategy to educate the public and promote safe driving behaviors in compliance with the law.

“Partnering with Maryland allows our efforts to be amplified as we combat impaired driving during this holiday period,” said Delaware OHS Deputy Director Richard Klepner. “OHS will partner with law enforcement throughout Delaware with increased visibility and presence on our roadways. There’s no excuse to drink and drive. Even one can be too many. Plan ahead to have a sober ride.”

In anticipation of the St. Patrick’s Day DUI enforcement and campaign initiatives, OHS has launched a first-of-its-kind digital tool called the Arrive Alive DE Visualizer DUI-Involved Crash Tool to share information with Delawareans and visitors on crash locations and educate website visitors to drive sober. Housed on the Arrive Alive DE website, this 5-year snapshot of DUI-involved crashes shows the concentration of crashes across the state through an interactive heat map.

In addition to the Arrive Alive DE Visualizer DUI-Involved Crash Tool, OHS has launched other versions of the digital tool for occupant protection and pedestrian safety. The Arrive Alive DE Visualizer is designed to educate drivers and pedestrians to help save lives in Delaware and Arrive Alive to their destination. Visit ArriveAliveDE.com to explore this digital tool and more on highway safety education in Delaware.

“Impaired driving is never the right choice so if you do plan to go out, be sure to plan ahead for a sober ride home,” said MDOT MVA Administrator Chrissy Nizer, who also serves as Governor Larry Hogan’s Highway Safety Representative. “Every year, families lose loved ones to impaired driving crashes. It’s up to each of us to prevent these tragedies from occurring.”

In 2019, 535 people were killed on Maryland’s roadways and one-third of those deaths involved someone impaired by alcohol, drugs, or both. During last year’s enforcement effort, participating agencies issued 703 citations in Wicomico, Somerset, and Worcester counties – including 205 for speeding – and made 18 arrests for impaired driving.

To coincide with the high visibility enforcement, the MDOT MVA’s Highway Safety Office will also share Be the Make A Plan Driver and Be the Sober Driver messages on a variety of social media platforms including Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Snapchat.

Additional information on Maryland’s Be the Driver campaign can be found here.

More information on Delaware’s Be Driven Not to Drive campaign is available here.

About the Delaware Office of Highway Safety
The Office of Highway Safety (OHS) is committed to improving the safety of Delaware’s motoring public by focusing on behavioral traffic safety issues, such as impaired driving, seat belt use, speeding, child passenger safety, pedestrian and bicycle safety, motorcycle safety, and teen driving issues. Follow the Delaware Office of Highway Safety on ArriveAliveDE.com, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Snapchat.

About the Maryland Department of Transportation Motor Vehicle Administration (MDOT MVA) Highway Safety Office 

Learn more about the MDOT MVA’s Highway Safety Office at ZeroDeathsMD.gov or on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram at @ZeroDeathsMD.

CONTACT:

Cynthia Cavett, Delaware Office of Highway Safety, Cynthia.Cavett@delaware.gov

Whitney Nichels, MDOT MVA, wnichels@mdot.maryland.gov

Delaware Office of Highway Safety Launches Operation Crash Reduction and New Website Over Most Dangerous Holiday Period

DOVER, Del. (October 5, 2020) – The Delaware Office of Highway Safety (DOHS) is launching a combination of initiatives over this October holiday weekend, which is the most dangerous time of the year for fatal crashes in the state with increased vehicular travel. To help drivers and passengers remember the importance of buckling up, the DOHS is teaming with the U.S. Department of Transportation’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) to check for seat belt usage in an initiative called Operation Crash Reduction. Additionally, DOHS is relaunching its highway safety website, ArriveAliveDE.com, with more information and interactive tools to help inform Delawareans of road safety practices, including seat belt usage.

Operation Crash Reduction focuses on Delaware, the District of Columbia, Kentucky, Maryland, North Carolina, Virginia, and West Virginia. According to NHTSA, from 2014 to 2018, this region had its highest number of fatal crashes (882) between the dates of October 1 and 15, and October was the month when most fatal crashes occurred. This regional campaign runs from October 9 through October 12 and includes a social media campaign to further raise awareness.

“During Operation Crash Reduction and all year long, our mission is to reduce crashes on Delaware roadways and save lives,” explains Kimberly Chesser, Director, Delaware Office of Highway Safety. “With more cars on the road during this holiday period, there is more speeding, distracted driving, and impaired driving behaviors, which lead to more crashes. We strive to provide our citizens with the information they need to stay safe, and that includes wearing your seat belt because buckling up provides the best defense against injury or death in a crash,” says Chesser. 

Through the relaunched website, ArriveAliveDE.com, DOHS reminds drivers of the importance of seat belt use and other safe driving practices. “ArriveAliveDE.com contains the most up-to-date information on road safety to help Delawareans adopt safe driving, walking, and riding behaviors,” says Cynthia Cavett, Marketing Specialist II & Public Information Officer, Delaware Office of Highway Safety. “The site allows visitors to navigate and learn by road safety topic or by user role, such as driver or pedestrian. It features numerous new interactive tools and quizzes, all designed to educate Delawareans on road safety. Visitors can also register for upcoming DUI checkpoint text alerts,” explains Cavett.

Delawareans will find a dynamic, centralized repository of road safety information at ArriveAliveDE.com detailing nine road safety topics determined to be the priority areas by the Office of Highway Safety’s rigorous analyses of crash data and trends. These include Seat Belt Safety, Distracted Driving, Drunk Driving, Drugged Driving, Speeding, Pedestrian Safety, Child Passenger Safety, Motorcycle Safety, and Teen Driver Safety.

“It’s very important to get out the Buckle Up message because seat belts save lives. We invite all Delawareans to visit ArriveAliveDE.com to learn more about seat belt safety and other road safety topics to help save lives and reduce crashes across our state,” says Sarah Cattie, Occupant Protection Program Manager, Delaware Office of Highway Safety.

Connect with us: 

ArriveAliveDE  Facebook  Twitter 

Instagram  LinkedIn  YouTube  Snapchat

About the Delaware Office of Highway Safety
The Office of Highway Safety (OHS) is committed to improving the safety of Delaware’s motoring public by focusing on behavioral traffic safety issues such as impaired driving, seat belt use, speeding, child passenger safety, pedestrian and bicycle safety, motorcycle safety, and teen driving issues. FAQs can be found at ArriveAliveDE.com.

Media Contact:

Cynthia Cavett

Marketing Specialist II & Public Information Officer

Phone: (302) 943-7293

Email address: Cynthia.Cavett@Delaware.Gov

Office of Highway Safety Suspends SoberLift^® Program for St. Patrick’s Day

*MEDIA ALERT*

March 15, 2020 

WHAT: The Delaware Office of Highway Safety (OHS) is suspending its SoberLift program as of 9 p.m. on Sunday, March 15, through Wednesday, March 18 at 2 a.m., statewide, due to growing concern for the health and safety of Delawareans and their families brought on by the coronavirus (COVID-19).

Ultimately this decision works to protect everyone’s health, prevent the spread of the virus and support our nation’s health system from becoming overwhelmed during this unprecedented situation.

OHS also wants to take this opportunity to encourage Delawareans to be vigilant with their health and that of their loved ones, elderly and vulnerable neighbors during this situation. Individuals can stay informed through the State of Delaware’s dedicated coronavirus website, www.DE.gov/coronavirus.

If you have questions about the coronavirus in Delaware, please contact the Division of Public Health Call Center at 1-866-408-1899 or email at DPHcall@delaware.gov. Hours of operation M-F 8:30 a.m. to 8 p.m. and Sat-Sun 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. The call center is open to take questions from the public, schools, medical providers, and community organizations. People with hearing impairments can dial 7-1-1.

WHERE: State of Delaware       

WHEN: Immediately

WHO: The Delaware Office of Highway Safety

            Lyft^®

MORE: The program was set to run through Wednesday, March 18 at 2 a.m., providing free Lyft^® vouchers* (maximum value of $15) for individuals who want a sober ride. For more information, please visit ohs.delaware.gov.

CONTACT: Cynthia Cavett (302-943-7293) or Jenn Buchman (215-806-1635)

SOCIAL MEDIA: Facebook (@highwaysafetyde); Twitter (@highwaysafetyDE); Instagram (highwaysafetyde); Snapchat (@highwaysafetyDE).

You can follow the Delaware Office of Highway Safety by clicking on:

Delaware Office of Highway Safety Web Site

Facebook

Twitter

Instagram

About the Delaware Office of Highway Safety
The Office of Highway Safety (OHS) is committed to improving the safety of Delaware’s motoring public by focusing on behavioral traffic safety issues such as impaired driving, seat belt use, speeding, child passenger safety, pedestrian and bicycle safety, motorcycle safety, and teen driving issues. FAQs can be found at ArriveAliveDE.com.

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Office of Highway Safety Activates  SoberLift^® Program for St. Patrick’s Day 

*MEDIA ALERT*

Friday, March 13, 2020 

Statewide DUI initiative to run from March 13 through March 18

WHAT:     The Delaware Office of Highway Safety (OHS) is re-activating the SoberLift program, in partnership with Lyft^® over St. Patrick’s Day weekend, statewide.

The program will begin on Friday, March 13, at 8 p.m., and run through Wednesday, March 18 at 2 a.m., and will provide free Lyft^® vouchers* (maximum value of $15) for individuals who want a sober ride. To participate in the program, individuals need to text “SOBERLIFT” to 99000 to redeem the discount code.

Campaign sponsors include Breakthru Beverage DE, Crown Royal, Captain Morgan, Two Stones Pub, Buffalo Wild Wings, Grain Craft Bar + Kitchen, First State Brew Bus, Kelly’s Logan House, Washington Street Ale House/Oyster House, Wilmington Blue Rocks, Delaware Department of Insurance, Dewey Business Partnership, Bluecoast Seafood Grill & Raw Bar Rehoboth, The Starboard, Liquid Alchemy Brewing, and Aloysius Butler & Clark (AB&C). 

WHERE:  State of Delaware              

WHEN:   Friday, March 13 at 8 p.m., and running through Wednesday, March 18 at 2 a.m.

WHO:     The Delaware Office of Highway Safety

                Lyft^®

MORE:    St. Patrick’s Day ranks among the top five most popular drinking days in America – only behind New Year’s Eve, Christmas and Fourth of July, and like most states, it is celebrated across several weekends throughout March as well as the actual day. In 2018 alone, 73 people (39% of all crash fatalities) were killed in drunk-driving crashes over the St. Patrick’s Day holiday period (NHTSA). 673 DUI arrests have already taken place in Delaware in 2020.

OHS encourages Delawareans to have fun, but if you plan to drink make the safest choice – during one of the most dangerous times of the year – by utilizing SoberLift, to Arrive Alive during this festive holiday.

For more information on sober driving, please visit ArriveAliveDE.com/Drive-Sober and for more information on sober rides, please visit ArriveAliveDE.com/Drive-Sober/Safe-Rides.

*The number of daily codes available will be limited.

 CONTACT: Cynthia Cavett (302-744-2743) or Jenn Buchman (215-806-1635)

You can follow the Delaware Office of Highway Safety by clicking on:

Delaware Office of Highway Safety Web Site

Facebook

Twitter

Instagram

About the Delaware Office of Highway Safety
The Office of Highway Safety (OHS) is committed to improving the safety of Delaware’s motoring public by focusing on behavioral traffic safety issues such as impaired driving, seat belt use, speeding, child passenger safety, pedestrian and bicycle safety, motorcycle safety, and teen driving issues. FAQs can be found at ArriveAliveDE.com.

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