The Safe Family Holiday campaign is Delaware’s traffic safety campaign for the holiday season. The campaign, which runs from Thanksgiving through New Year’s Day, consists of both high visibility enforcement efforts and public awareness activities aimed at stopping impaired and other dangerous drivers.
Take a look below for a list of enforcement and awareness activities and links to updated campaign statistics.
Awareness Activities
OHS conducts several awareness and community based activities throughout the holidays to generate awareness of impaired driving.
DUI Victim’s Tree Project - This highly successful project now in its tenth year is a visual way to demonstrate the impact of impaired driving in Delaware during the holidays. Artificial trees, located in the lobby of the Dover DMV, the Georgetown DMV, the Wilmington DMV, and the New Castle DMV are each strung with clear light bulbs, MADD ribbons and designated driver messages. Each red light on the tree, which replaces a clear light bulb, will symbolize an alcohol-related death, and each green bulb represents an alcohol-related injury in Delaware during the Safe Family Holiday campaign. For the latest update on the DUI Tree statistics please click on the "Press Release" button on the right.
For pictures of the DUI Victim's Tree, please click on the the tree below.
Holiday Mocktail Parties - It's a non-alcoholic cocktail party for the public where non-alcoholic punch and appropriate party foods are served along with safety information about DUI laws and the consequences for breaking them. Booklets containing responsible party hosting tips as well as food and drink recipes for a holiday gathering are available at the event as well. Click here for a PDF version of the Mocktail Recipe Book.
The public can also participate in a number of simulated impaired driving activities and learn about designated driver programs. Mocktails are held to demonstrate that a successful holiday celebration does not have to include alcohol.
Enforcement
The Office of Highway Safety is coordinating holiday enforcement for 21 State, County, and Municipal law enforcement agencies during the holiday season. 33 Sobriety checkpoints (part of OHS's ongoing Checkpoint Strikeforce campaign) and 292 DUI Saturation Patrols are scheduled to occur between Thanksgiving and New Year's Eve to keep residents safe from impaired drivers. 21 of the checkpoints and 198 of the patrols will be conducted between Dec. 15 and the 31st, which is when Delaware will join hundreds of law enforcement agencies nationwide for a national Impaired Driving Crackdown. Additionally, on Thanksgiving weekend, Delaware State Police will be conducting 64 patrols to stop and cite aggressive, speeding and unbelted drivers. Troopers will also focus their attention unbelted motorists near major shopping areas in an effort to remind them that seat belt use is required for every occupant in a vehicle - even in the backseat - and that seat belt use is your best defense against death and injury in a car crash! Click here to see the most recent campaign statistics.
OHS will distribute tags with a "don't drink and drive" message on them to local Christmas tree farmers during the first week in December. Look for these tree tags when you purchase your tree.
If you would like more information about the Safe Family Holiday campaign, or copies of some of our safety literature, please call us at 744-2740 or e-mail us at andrea.summers@state.de.us.
Take a look below for a list of enforcement and awareness activities and links to updated campaign statistics.
