Pittsburgh, PA – The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT) and members of the Allegheny County Safety Partners partnered with local law enforcement to stress the importance of sober driving and walking surrounding the Halloween holiday.

The Allegheny County Safety Partners and law enforcement gathered in the Municipality of Penn Hills to discuss a united effort to keep the county's roadways safe ahead of Halloween, a popular holiday for drug and alcohol consumption. The group is reminding the traveling public to be safe and smart while celebrating at the holiday.

Collaborating to educate and enforce impaired driving and walking awareness, the participating agencies are working together throughout the county. PennDOT and other agencies are reminding everyone to recognize how drugs, even prescribed medications, along with alcohol, impact them. At the same time, local and state law enforcement will increase impaired driving enforcement efforts to keep the public safe throughout the holiday period.

According to PennDOT data, from 2019 to 2021 there were 1,349 crashes on Halloween statewide, resulting in nine fatalities. Of those crashes, 114 were alcohol-related, resulting in five fatalities alone. Additionally, there were 44 Halloween pedestrian crashes resulting in two fatalities during the same timeframe in Pennsylvania.

To combat these statistics, the partners encourage motorists and pedestrians to plan ahead and celebrate responsibly. Motorists should designate a sober driver, use public transportation, or a ride share service. A person is considered alcohol-impaired with a blood alcohol concentration (BAC) of .08 or higher. However, someone with a lower BAC can have impaired judgment and reaction times as well.

Pedestrians are also encouraged to plan for safe travel by designating a "sober walker" to ensure everyone makes it to their destination safely. Pedestrians are also reminded to walk smart by crossing at intersections, using crosswalks, looking both ways before crossing the street, and overall being aware of their surroundings.

The Allegheny County Safety Partners consist of the AAA East Central, Allegheny County Health Department, Allegheny County Police Department, Allegheny County Pretrial Services, Allegheny County Sheriff Department, Children's Hospital Injury Prevention, City of Pittsburgh Police Department, Pennsylvania Department of Transportation, Pennsylvania DUI Association, Pennsylvania State Police, Pennsylvania Traffic Injury Prevention Project, and Port Authority Police Department.

For more information, visit www.PennDOT.pa.gov/safety.

PennDOT's media center offers social-media-sized graphics highlighting topics such as aggressive driving, speeding, distracted driving, and seat belts for organizations, community groups, or others who share safety information with their stakeholders.

For regional updates, follow PennDOT on Twitter and join the Greater Pittsburgh Area PennDOT Facebook group.

MEDIA CONTACT: Yasmeen Manyisha, ymanyisha@pa.gov

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