CHARLESTON, WV — The West Virginia Governor’s Highway Safety Program (GHSP) has teamed up with the U.S. Department of Transportation’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) to remind drivers and motorcyclists to drive and ride sober as summer begins to wind down. The National If You Feel Different, You Drive Different campaign runs from August 16, 2024, through September 2, 2024. The goal of this impaired driving mobilization is to prevent drug-impaired driving and arrest impaired drivers caught on the roads. The GHSP is urging drivers and motorcyclists to refrain from impaired driving, whether it be from alcohol, illegal drugs, or prescription medications.
“We want everyone to enjoy the last month of summer and the Labor Day holiday, but we also want to make sure everyone is responsible on West Virginia’s roadways,” said Jack McNeely, GHSP Director. “If you are impaired by any substance, you should never drive.”
Law enforcement will be on the road, working to identify impaired drivers and remove them from the roadway. An essential part of drug-impaired driving enforcement is the Drug Evaluation Classification (DEC) program, in which officers are trained as Drug Recognition Experts (DREs), to detect drug-impaired drivers affected by seven major drug categories.
Early estimates show that, in 2023, nearly 62 percent of traffic fatalities in WV involved positive indicators of drug use, whether illegal or prescription. Combining various drugs, prescription medications, and alcohol is especially dangerous because there is no way to truly know how different combinations of impairing substances may affect you and your ability to drive.
“The If You Feel Different, You Drive Different campaign is an awareness and enforcement effort to get the message out that impaired driving is not only illegal, it takes lives. Let’s make this a partnership between law enforcement and drivers: Help us protect the community and put an end to this senseless behavior,” McNeely explained.
By working together, we can save lives and help keep West Virginia’s roadways safe. It takes a commitment from our communities, our political leaders, and state and federal agencies to make an impact and reduce crashes, injuries, and fatalities. Please join the GHSP and NHTSA in sharing this life-saving message, If You Feel Different, You Drive Different. For more information about impaired driving, please visit nhtsa.gov/risky-driving/drug-
For more information on the West Virginia Governor’s Highway Safety Program, visit highwaysafety.wv.gov or call 304-926-2509.
