In an effort to combat drunken driving and increase safety belt use, the Oneida County Sheriff’s Office will intensify its traffic safety enforcement St. Patrick’s Day weekend. The increased enforcement is funded with a grant from the Wisconsin Department of Transportation’s (WisDOT) Bureau of Transportation Safety.

“During the St. Patrick’s Day mobilization and throughout the year, we are striving to prevent motorists from killing and injuring themselves and others on our roadways. Although we’re trying to increase voluntarily compliance with traffic laws-not to write more tickets or make more arrests-we will take enforcement action if voluntary compliance fails,” says Sheriff Grady Hartman. “We are serious about traffic safety enforcement because far too many needless deaths and serious injuries are caused by drunken driving and not wearing safety belts. Because even one preventable traffic fatality is one too many, our goal is to reduce preventable traffic deaths to zero in Wisconsin.”

In time for the St. Patrick’s Day weekend, WisDOT’s Zero In Wisconsin traffic safety campaign is launching a free “Drive Sober” app for smart phones beginning March 7. This new app includes:

• A location-specific list for contacting nearby taxi and mass transit services.

• A blood alcohol content (BAC) estimator.

• A designated driver selector.

• And other features to help everyone avoid a drunken driving arrest or crash.

A free download of the app is available online by visiting: zeroinwisconsin.gov

For more information contact: Lt. Lloyd Gauthier at 715.361.5100