DUI checkpoints planned for Cinco de Mayo

Special DUI patrols are scheduled for Tuesday, the day of Cinco de Mayo celebrations.

The Avoid the 11 DUI Task Force will deploy in Merced, Los Banos and Atwater, and every patrol officer on duty will be on heightened alert, the Merced Police Department announced Monday.

“Our main goal is to save lives,” said Merced Police Chief Norm Andrade in a press release. “Around the county, we want to debunk the myth that you can drink until you feel it and then get behind the wheel. You can’t.”

Statistics show that 30 percent of the drivers in fatal crashes had one or more drugs in their system.

Of the drugs, marijuana was most prevalent, at 7.4 percent, slightly more than alcohol. Mixing medication or drugs – legal or illegal – is a dangerous cocktail, police said.

Police reminded the public that the average DUI costs about $10,000 and drunk-driving deaths are 100 percent preventable.

The California Office of Traffic Safety is offering a free mobile app – DDVIP, which is aimed at thanking the sober designated driver with perks and free offers at area bars and restaurants.

The next countywide DUI Task force deployment will be for the Memorial Day Holiday, May 23-26.

This story was originally published May 4, 2015 at 6:50 PM with the headline "DUI checkpoints planned for Cinco de Mayo."