August 15, 2006

Two TV ads announcing stepped up drunk driving enforcement and the consequences of an arrest will start airing Wednesday as part of statewide efforts to deter motorists from driving drunk.

The advertising blitz sponsored by the Michigan Office of Highway Safety Planning (OHSP) warns motorists that the You Drink & Drive. You Lose. statewide crackdown kicks off Aug. 18 and runs through Sept. 4. The ads will run Wednesday through Sunday for three weeks on television and cable stations in the Detroit, Flint and Grand Rapids media markets. The advertising buy also includes radio spots in these locations, because these areas comprise about 40 percent of the state’s alcohol-related fatalities.

One ad focuses on the relentless nature of drunk driving enforcement, noting that more than 50,000 Michigan motorists were arrested for drunk driving last year. A second spot features an actor dealing with the financial burdens that go along with a drunk driving conviction.

"The consequences of a drunk driving arrest are very real and very costly," said Michael L. Prince, OHSP division director. "Fines, increased insurance rates and the possible loss of the driver’s license are just some of the penalties drunk drivers have to face when they’re arrested. We encourage everyone to avoid these costs by driving sober."

Concepts were born out of focus group findings that indicate the target group, men ages 21 to 34, is most concerned with the monetary consequences of a drunk driving arrest and conviction.

Pace and Partners, a Lansing-based firm, developed the campaign. No state general fund money is being used to support this effort. Federal traffic safety dollars are funding the ad campaign targeting motorists most likely to drive drunk: young men.