Deemed as deadliest ‘holiday’ to be on the roads
Charlotte, N.C. (November 22, 2022) – The Wednesday before Thanksgiving has earned itself a few nicknames, like Blackout Wednesday and Drinksgiving to be exact, because it can sometimes be a more popular partying night than New Year’s Eve or Saint Patrick’s Day. AAA Carolinas is warning motorists about the dangers of driving during this pre-holiday.
“Blackout Wednesday has become synonymous with binge drinking with most people off the next day and college students home for the holiday,” said Tiffany Wright, spokesperson, AAA – The Auto Club Group in the Carolinas. “What happens, unfortunately, is that we have more intoxicated drivers getting behind the wheel, endangering themselves and others.”
During the Thanksgiving holiday period in North Carolina for 2020, there were 173 collisions and 4 fatalities. Of those crashes, 17% were a direct result of alcohol, according to NCDOT. For 2018, over the same time period in South Carolina, there were 80 collisions relating to alcohol that resulted in 42 injuries and five fatalities, according to the SCDPS.
According to NHTSA, during the Thanksgiving holiday weekend from 2016-2020, over 800 people died in crashes involving a drunk driver. The holiday period begins on Thanksgiving Eve, when we typically see people begin to gather with family and friends. In fact, from 2016-2020, 138 drivers involved in fatal crashes on Thanksgiving Eve were drunk.
It’s important to understand that even a small amount of alcohol can affect a person quickly. For example, someone with a blood alcohol concentration of .02 can have some loss of judgment. In order to stay safe on the roads, AAA Carolinas is urging motorists to do the following:
- Have a plan in place if you plan to drink that night.
- Utilize a ride-sharing service like Uber or Lyft, or call a taxi.
- Never let friends or family get behind the wheel if they have been drinking, and never get in the car with a driver that has been drinking.
- Call the police if you suspect that someone is drinking and driving.
- Avoid driving Wednesday night if you don’t have to.
- Additionally, AAA is activating its Tow-to-Go program in Charlotte, N.C. during the Thanksgiving holiday weekend to keep impaired drivers off the road. It is active from 6pm Wednesday, November 23rd – 6am Monday, November 28th and should be treated as a last resort. It is free and available to AAA members and non-members.
- Charlotteans can call (855) 2-TOW-2-GO or (855) 286-9246 to access a confidential ride for one person and their vehicle to a safe location within a 10-mile radius.
About AAA – The Auto Club Group
The Auto Club Group (ACG) is the second largest AAA club in North America with more than 13 million members across 14 U.S. states, the province of Quebec and two U.S. territories. ACG and its affiliates provide members with roadside assistance, insurance products, banking and financial services, travel offerings and more. ACG belongs to the national AAA federation with more than 62 million members in the United States and Canada. AAA’s mission is to protect and advance freedom of mobility and improve traffic safety. For more information, get the AAA Mobile app, visit AAA.com, and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn