El Nacional de Tulsa

TB EL NACIONAL DE TULSA VIERNES DE SEPTIEMBRE, • www.elnacionaldeoklahoma.com 6A SUNDAY, AUGUST 13, 2017 THE OKLAHOMAN | NEWSOK.COM BY MICHAELA MARX WHEA TLEY BrandInsight Editor When people think of rural roads, many think of the idyllic countryside, the scenic route away from busy city roads. However, when it comes to impaired driving, statistically, it's actually safer to drive in urban areas. In 2016, a total of 185 alcohol or drug-related fatalities occurred on Oklahoma's roads; 64 of these fatalities happened in urban areas, while 121 of them happened in rural areas. "One-hundred-eighty- five people died on rural roads. To me, not a one should have lost their lives," said Captain Bob Roberts of the Sac and Fox Nation Tribal Police based in Stroud. Rob- erts, a 43-year veteran of the force, is in charge of a team of 11 officers who serve three counties. While crashes occur more frequently in urban areas, fatal crashes are more frequent in rural areas due to a few contrib- uting factors. Rural travel involves navigating an environment of longer dis- tances featuring relatively low traffic volumes, tra- versing riskier roads and even encounters with wild life, explained Roberts. "I think the obvious answer is the speed in which they take place. In rural areas you going to be going much faster, with less visible law enforcement," Roberts said. "Some roads aren't nearly as safe as in urban areas. Some people take more chances on the traffic violation in the rural areas ... I know all of these things contribute." Studies have also shown that seat belt compliance is lower in rural areas, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. In fact, 53 percent of rural pas- senger vehicle occupants killed were unrestrained compared to 48 percent of urban passenger vehicle occupants killed. More- over, nearly two-thirds of rural pickup occupants that were killed were not wearing seat belts, the highest percentage of any passenger vehicle occu- pants killed among both rural and urban areas. Some experts also argue that low access to medi- cal response teams and quality trauma treat- ment plays a role in the higher fatality rates in rural areas. If an impaired driver crashes at a remote location, it may take a lon- ger amount of time until he or she is found, and it will likely take longer for a response team to arrive at the scene. In addition, rural hospitals may not be able deal with more seri- ous trauma cases. Mean- while, in metro areas, crash victims may receive emergency medical atten- tion sooner and hospital facilities are closer than in most rural areas. False sense of safety The officers said many drivers also assume that the back roads are safer than main roads because there is less traffic. Some impaired drivers also count on the back roads to have a less visible police presence. "I do believe they feel safer. I think that's why they are where they are at," Roberts said. That doesn't mean that Roberts and his officers aren't out there to keep impaired drivers off the road. But enforcing in three counties is not easy and requires close col- laboration with partner agencies such as local sheriff's departments and the Oklahoma High- way Patrol. "OHP does a great job but they can't be every- where," he added. It's not a phenome- non unique to the coun- try. City drivers also try to dodge enforcement efforts by selecting back roads. But the police know that they are there, said Trooper Chris Liles, an Impaired Driving Liai- son for the Oklahoma Highway Safety Office. "In cities, drivers I catch impaired are duck- ing through neighbor- hood streets at 2:30 a.m. trying to get from one major thoroughfare to the other," Liles said. Impaired driving across the state It is also important to understand that DUI takes many forms across the state. "In our experience at this time — and five years ago I wouldn't have made that statement — we deal more with individuals on illegal drugs than drunken drivers," said Roberts, whose jurisdiction covers a vast rural area. Roberts believes that is a result of education on alcohol-impaired driving in recent years. He also said addicts are harder to reach with education as they not only battle mak- ing the right or wrong choice, but also with their addiction. Liles said in urban areas officers encounter both alcohol-impaired driv- ing and drugged driving, including people driving under the influence of prescription medications. "We all know when you watch the news that there is a dangerous problem here in the state of Okla- homa and nationwide, too many prescriptions being the issued," Roberts said. "That's probably another reason why we are seeing what we are seeing." "It's a real danger," he added. Liles agreed. "Both are prolific prob- lems in this state. The opioid crisis is a problem nationwide, but it is well documented in the state as well," Liles added. "Something's got to be done to make that stop. It's a real danger state- wide. That's for sure," Roberts said. Enforcing DUI laws On city or country roads — all Oklahoma law enforcement agencies have the shared mission of keeping impaired driv- ers of the road. "We do it the same way you do it in urban areas as in the rural," Roberts said. "We deal with it in the same way any law enforcement would." That means patrols and checkpoints. Furthermore, commu- nication and the sharing of records have improved to detect and prevent repeat impaired drivers. "It has to be a multia- gency function," Liles said. "We can't have any agency ignoring the impaired driving problem." One of the biggest achievements for those fighting DUI in Oklahoma was the 2016 passage of the Impaired Driving Elimina- tion Act, House Bill 3146, which passed in a bipar- tisan effort to improve prosecution of repeat DUI offenders. Now DUI cases are moved from non- record municipal courts to district courts. The act also established a statewide database track- ing all impaired driving arrests. The state's Depart- ment of Public Safety was tasked with creating the database, which calls on all law enforcement offi- cers, from state troopers to municipal police officers, to complete impaired driver arrest reports that will be entered into the database. This means that if peo- ple were previously con- victed of DUI, they are in the system for judges and other agencies to see. Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over The Oklahoma Highway Safety Office will partner with local law enforce- ment agencies across the state during this year's Labor Day Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over high- visibility enforcement campaign from Aug. 16 through Sept. 4. The enforcement cam- paign includes the Labor Day holiday weekend, which is one of the deadliest times of the year for drunk- driving fatalities, Liles said. "During those two weeks we focus on impaired driving," he said. "Of course, over Labor Day, we are finishing the 100 most dangerous days to drive in the U.S." Over the 2016 Labor Day holiday period, there were 460 crash fatalities nation- wide. Forty percent of those fatal crashes involved drivers who had been drinking (. 01+ BAC). Of those alcohol-related fatal crashes, nearly one third involved drivers who were impaired (. 08+ BAC), and nearly one-fourth involved drivers who were driving with a BAC almost twice the illegal limit (. 15+ BAC). "We are not going to arrest our way out of the problem, but if we make the arrest then maybe that crash isn't going to happen," Liles said. Celebrate with a plan ENDUI officials urge Oklahomans to celebrate Labor Day with a plan. Have a designated driver or call a taxi or ride-share service. "It's a conscious decision to get behind the wheel," Liles said. "Is the $20 ride home too much in compari- son to what could happen?" Download NHTSA's SaferRide mobile app available on Google Play for Android devices, which allows users to call a taxi or a predetermined friend, and identifies the user's location so he or she can be picked up. Don't let friends drive impaired and report erratic drivers that you may observe on the road. "If you have love for your family, if you have love for God — when you get behind the wheel, you operate that vehicle in a safe manner," Roberts said. For more informa- tion, please visit www. enduiok.org. This article sponsored by Oklahoma Highway Safety Office. Country roads aren't 'safe haven' for impaired drivers * Urban crashes include those that occur within the limits of an urban area with a population of 5000 or more. ALCOHOL & DRUG RELATED CRASHES IN OKLAHOMA 2016 URBANvsRURAL 64 121 FATAL 143 198 SERIOUS INJURY 2738 1807 T O TA L C R A S H I N J U R I E S Oklahoman BrandInsight Connecting marketers to The Oklahoman reader. While crashes occur more frequently in urban areas, fatal crashes are more frequent in rural areas. [THINKSTOCK PHOTO]

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