TxDOT promoting Drive Sober, No Regrets campaign

TEXAS ( FOX 44 ) – As Labor Day approaches, the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) is partnering with local law enforcement to try and prevent as many drunk driving crashes and deaths as possible.

This comes as part of its “Drive Sober, No Regrets” campaign. From now until September 2, you can expect to see more police on he road looking for drunk drivers.

We spoke with Analicia Zarate, who lost her mom at a young age because of a drunk driver. She is now using her story to get the message out.

“The last thing that I can recall is being buckled up in the car seat. And I woke up in the hospital a week later. I had been placed in an induced coma,” Analicia explains.

In 2000, Analicia and her mother Nereida were on their way home from church when a drunk driver in a truck ignored a stop sign, slamming into their car. Analicia was four years old and received major head trauma. Her 39-year-old mother was killed instantly.

“Unfortunately, me and my family have suffered with the choices that a drunk driver made one night,” Analicia says.

Because of Analicia’s injuries, she wasn’t even able to attend her mother’s funeral. Now these memories that could have been stick out and hurt the most.

“She was unable to attend my high school and college graduation. It was really difficult when I had my daughter. That was very emotional for me. I couldn’t call my mom to let her know that I was pregnant or having a little girl,” Analicia says.

TxDOT, police agencies and even Moms Against Drunk Driving (MADD) all say the same thing about drunk driving – “It’s 100 percent preventable!”

As part of their Drive Sober, No Regrets campaign, TxDOT lays out the life-saving alternatives to driving drunk.

“[A] Designated driver who won’t be drinking any alcohol. Call a sober friend or family member to give you a ride. Use a rideshare or taxi service. Use public transit. Stay put until you’re sober,” says TxDOT traffic safety program manager Ruby Martinez.

But if you do decide to take the risk and get behind the wheel drunk, Officer Amanda Lindsey with the Waco Police Department has a warning for you.

“We will be on the lookout for you. We will find you. We will pull you over. And we will arrest you,” Officer Lindsey explains.

It doesn’t have to come to this, though. Analicia says before you drink, stop and think.

“Think about me. My family and my mother, Nereida Flores Garza, before you make that choice,” says Analicia.

Here are a few stats for you…

Last year, 334 DUI and alcohol-related crashes resulted in 14 deaths and 35 injuries on Labor Day weekend alone.

Next alarming number…one person in Texas is killed every eight hours becase of drunk driving.

And finally…last year just over 1,000 people were killed in Texas because of drunk driving.

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