The National Highway Transportation Safety Administration  released some startling numbers regarding drinking and driving  in their report titled: "National Survey On Drinking and Driving Attitudes and Behaviors."  The survey concluded that and estimated 17 million motorists in the U.S. may have driven while drunk in the preceding 12 month and twenty percent of the public 16 and older had in the past year driven a motor vehicle within two hours of drinking alcohol.  About two-thirds of these, or 13 percent of the total population 16 and older had done so in the past 30 days. The survey produced an estimate of 85.5 million past-month drinking-driving  trip, up from 73.7 million trips in 2004.

The scary part of the of this survey is the resulting damage that these drinking and driving  trips have caused. Among persons 16 and older involved in a motor vehicle crash in the past two years, 20% reported that someone had been injured in the (most recent) crash. Respondents were more likely to report that an involved driver had been drinking alcohol if the car crash led to injury (32%) than if no injury occurred (5%).

About 1% of the population 16 and older had been arrested for a drinking and driving  violation in the past two years; the percentage was 5% for males 21 to 24. Almost three-fourths of the public believed that drivers who had too much to drink to drive safely would be somewhat likely (40%), very likely (21%), or almost certain (12%) to be stopped by police.

These are some eye-opening statistics. Remember, it is very simple to pick up the phone and call a cab or a friend. You may be protecting yourself and others, let alone the avoiding the legal problems that can ensue.

If you or someone you know has been been charged with a DUI  or traffic violation , then call Chicago DUI attorney  Aaron Bryant for a free consultation  at 312-588-3384 or go to the firm website at www.blgchicago.com