The Evanston Police Department will conducting a roadside safety check point this Friday night, June 17. With the July 4th Holiday approaching in the next few weeks, officers from the Traffic Bureau will be conducting a fixed checkpoint at locations in Evanston and have mobile patrols looking for drivers who are not in compliance with wearing seatbelts and drivers who are impaired. 

The night time enforcement is most effective, because this is the deadliest time of day for motor vehicle fatalities, said Commander Jay Parrott of the Evanston Police Department. The intensified enforcement effort against the overwhelming number of late-night impaired drivers and unbelted motorists underscores the disproportionate number of traffic deaths occurring during late night hours in Illinois, he said. 

Sgt. Thomas Moore, the commanding officer of the Evanston Police Department’s Traffic Bureau, said, “The numbers don’t lie. Nighttime is the critical time for motor vehicle fatalities so we will be stepping up our late-night enforcement efforts, making sure impaired drivers are off the road and motorists are buckled up. If you drive at night, you are in our sight.”

 The Evanston Police Department recommends designating a sober driver and not letting friends and family drive impaired as just two of several simple steps to avoid a tragic crash or an arrest for impaired driving. Other important tips include: 

  • Plan ahead. Designate a sober driver before going out and give that person your keys.
  • If you are impaired, call a taxi, use mass transit or call a sober friend or family member to get you home safely.
  • Promptly report impaired drivers you see on the roadways to law enforcement by pulling over and dialing 911;
  • Make sure everyone in your vehicle wears their safety belt. It is your best defense against an impaired driver. 

The law enforcement crackdown is funded by federal traffic safety funds through IDOT’s Division of Traffic Safety and it runs concurrently with a media campaign that will remind motorists, “You Drink & Drive. You Lose.”  For more information, visit:  www.drivesoberillinois.org.