Fans Don’t Let Fans Drive Drunk This Super Bowl Sunday

Law enforcement will work overtime to crack down on drunk drivers

The Tennessee Department of Transportation, Governor’s Highway Safety Office, Tennessee Titans and Tennessee Department of Safety and Homeland Security are once again teaming up to remind Tennessee football fans that real Fans Don’t Let Fans Drive Drunk this Super Bowl weekend. 

“We want everyone to enjoy Super Bowl weekend, but more importantly, we want everyone to be safe,” said TDOT Commissioner John Schroer. “Making responsible decisions could save your life or the life of someone else. If you choose to drink and drive this weekend, there’s a very good chance you’ll be caught.”

Nearly 10,000 Titans fans promised to be the designated driver for friends and family during the 2012 season, making the Titans one of the top teams in the AFC Division for designated driver pledges. 

“The Super Bowl has become a holiday for football fans across the nation,” Kendell Poole, Director of the Governor’s Highway Safety Office, said.  “If you’re hosting a Super Bowl celebration, it is important to know the responsibility of drinking guests could fall on you. Have a good time and enjoy the game, but always be responsible.”

This season, Titans fans joined nearly 250,000 NFL fans in the Designated Driver program, which is a collaboration among all 32 NFL teams, 31 stadiums, concessionaires, beer distributors and brewers, broadcasters, law enforcement agencies, and traffic safety experts.

“We’re proud of our fans’ dedication to responsible behavior this season and we want all football fans to follow their leadership this weekend,” added Don MacLachlan, Titans Executive Vice President of Administration and Facilities. “Handing your keys to a sober driver or taking a cab will always make you a winner.”

“One of the main priorities of the Tennessee Department of Safety and Homeland Security is to ensure Tennesseans are safe and secure on our roadways. Super Bowl Sunday is no exception.  We value our partnership with TDOT, the Governor’s Highway Safety Office and the Tennessee Titans. These partnerships are essential to our overall success of traffic safety education and enforcement this Super Bowl weekend. We want everyone to be responsible, don’t drink and drive, obey the laws, and enjoy the game,” Deputy Commissioner Larry Godwin said.

According to the Department of Safety and Homeland Security, two people were killed in alcohol related crashes on Tennessee roadways during last year’s Super Bowl weekend. 

Tennessee Highway Patrol Colonel Tracy Trott reminded football fans that drinking and driving is not worth the risk. “This will be the first Super Bowl weekend that we have conducted a “No Refusal” DUI enforcement. Last year, state troopers removed 80 drunk drivers from state roadways during Super Bowl weekend. We’re hopeful that this ‘No Refusal’ enforcement, coupled with our checkpoints and roving patrols, motorists will think twice before drinking and driving.”

For more information, please visit www.StopImpairedDriving.org or www.TeamCoalition.org.

One county from each of the eight THP Districts will participate in the “No Refusal” campaign, including Campbell County (Knoxville District), McMinn County (Chattanooga District), Rutherford County (Nashville District), Dyer County (Memphis District), Sullivan County (Fall Branch District), Putnam County (Cookeville District), Marshall County (Lawrenceburg District), and Weakley County (Jackson District).

A listing of THP sobriety and driver’s license checkpoints is attached to this release and can be found at www.tn.gov/safety/newsroom.htm.