(Washington, DC) The District Department of Transportation (DDOT) is proud to announce that the District leads the nation in reducing the number of alcohol-related traffic deaths, according to recently released data from the US Department of Transportation’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA).
 
NHTSA’s 2004 State Drunk Driving Statistics show that from 2003 to 2004, DC recorded a 56% drop in alcohol-related crashes, followed by Kansas with a 29% decrease, and Rhode Island with a 26% decline. The District's rate reflects a decline in the number of traffic crashes involving a driver or motorcycle rider with an illegal blood alcohol concentration (BAC) of 0.08 or higher. 
 
“This improvement is the result of the excellent inter-agency collaboration involving DDOT’s education campaigns and the Metropolitan Police Department’s (MPD) heightened enforcement,” said Dan Tangherlini, Director Department of Transportation. “While this drop is based on a small number of total crashes, we welcome any improvement in traffic safety. We will continue our work with MPD and other agencies to bring it down to zero.” 
 
Since 2001, DDOT and MPD officials have worked together to encourage safe driving with several advertising campaigns, including “You Drink, You Drive, You Lose” and “Click It or Ticket.” The agencies have also partnered to sponsor drunk driving safety checkpoints and enforce serious speeding violations.