From Friday through Labor Day weekend, the Lampasas Police Department will join more than 10,000 law enforcement agencies across the country for the National Alcohol-Impaired Driving Crackdown, "Drunk Driving. Over the Limit. Under Arrest."

The campaign is a large-scale, high-visibility law enforcement effort taking place throughout the holiday.

"Weekends can be a very dangerous time for travelers," said Sgt. Chuck Montgomery. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, there were 519 people killed in traffic crashes over the 2007 Labor Day weekend alone, and 40 percent of those crashes involved an alcohol-impaired driver or motorcycle rider with a blood-alcohol concentration of .08 or higher.

"Even with these sobering statistics, many still fail to grasp the seriousness of drinking and driving," Montgomery said. "Those that drive impaired put themselves -- and all others on the road with them -- at high risk for injury or death."

The Federal Bureau of Investigation estimates that there were about 1.5 million driving while impaired arrests in 2007 -- one of the top five criminal arrests in the nation. In the same year, 13,000 people were killed in crashes involving a driver or motorcycle rider with a BAC of .08 or higher. Of those, 1,333 were in Texas.

Young males, nighttime drivers and motorcycle riders face even higher risks. Impaired driving is most common among 21- to 34-year-old males, and 51 percent of the passenger vehicle drivers ages 21 to 34 killed in motor vehicle crashes in 2007 were legally drunk. At night, fatal crashes from alcoholimpaired drivers were four times higher.

For motorcycle riders, there also is a particularly high rate of alcohol involvement in fatal crashes. Forty-one percent of the 2,182 motorcycle riders who died in single-vehicle crashes in 2007 had BACs above the legal limit.

"We have no tolerance for drunk drivers," said Montgomery. "You will be arrested -- no excuses and no exceptions."

The costs of drunk driving are significant and can include jail time, fines, use of an ignition interlock, and loss of driver's license, plus higher insurance rates, work issues and much personal embarrassment. "Still, these consequences are nothing compared to losing your life or taking someone else's," said the police sergeant.

Lampasas Police Department reminds all residents to play it safe over the holiday weekend. "Make the decision to celebrate wisely this Labor Day and throughout the year. Be a designated driver, or plan ahead if you will be drinking alcohol by finding a designated driver, or make arrangements to take public transportation or spend the night where you will be.

"Drinking and driving is not worth the consequences."