Virginia officials are warning people not to drink and drive, whether they’re behind the wheel of a car or a boat.
“No matter what you drive — a passenger car, pickup, motorcycle, or boat — if you are caught driving impaired, you will be arrested,” Virginia State Police Superintendent Col. W. Steven Flaherty said in a statement.
State police and the Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries produced a pubic-service video saying, “We know that drunk boaters on the water become drunk drivers on the highway.”
Nationally, 57 percent of boating fatalities last year involved alcohol, officials said. About one-third of highway fatalities in 2011 were alcohol-related.
There are over 250,000 registered boats in Virginia — not including kayaks, canoes or motorized sailboats or the large number of out-of-state boats, officials said.
Seventy-five percent of the Virginia State Police’s uniformed force will be patrolling highways between Wednesday and Sunday. Maryland State Police first increased highway patrols last weekend and will continue through the July 4th holiday, officials said.
The Washington Regional Alcohol Program is offering its SoberRide program from 10 p.m. Wednesday through 4 a.m. Thursday. People ages 21 and over in the D.C. area can call 1-800-200-TAXI(8294) during those hours for a free taxi ride home, up to a $30 fare.
