From the Traffic Journal, Aug 2001. (www.nesafetycouncil.org)

Impaired Driving, Light Beers, Red Lights!

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Facts on Impaired Driving

1) At any time in the U.S. one driver out of every 50 on the road is not just impaired, but legally intoxicated.

2) On weekend nights, that number is closer to one out of 10.

3) On weekends between 10 p.m. and 2 a.m. one out of every five drivers is impaired.

Weekend SUMMARY

1 - The impaired rate from sunset until about 10 p.m. is one out of 10 drivers.

2 - From 10 p.m. until 2 a.m., the rate is one out of five.

3 - And from 2 a.m. until sunrise, the rate returns to one out of 10.

Remember, there are 3 nights in each weekend, on three day weekends, there are 4 nights, and during Thanksgiving holiday, there are 5 nights.

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Light Beer vs Regular beer

"Light beer" refers to calories only, not significantly less alcohol.

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Camera reduce red light running by 40%

According to Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (http://www.iihs.org), red light running factors into more than 800 deaths annually, and an estimated 200,000 persons are injured in crashes that involve red light running. Total deaths in such crashes totaled nearly 6,000 between 1992 and 1998, while fatal crashes at traffic signals increased 18% during the same time period.

IIHS has been looking at the effectiveness of red light camera programs that photograph license plates of vehicles whose drivers deliberately run red lights and ticket the drivers by mail. IIHS researchers found that these programs reduce red light running by about 40% in U.S. communities that have camera programs in place.