Sobriety checkpoint set-up anticipated

The Kansas Highway Patrol, Fort Scott Police Department and Bourbon County Sheriff's Department have announced plans to conduct a sobriety checkpoint during the month of June in the Fort Scott area, a news release said.

The sobriety checkpoint, intended to remove impaired drivers from the road, will be set up at an undisclosed area in Fort Scott. "The purpose of theses checkpoints is not to harass motorists, but to decrease crashes through awareness and enforcement," a KHP spokesperson said.

According to the statement, checkpoints are aimed at reducing the high crash rates by identifying impaired drivers. The goal of this month's checkpoint is to encourage compliance with the alcohol-related statutes of this state by removing the drivers who are under the influence of alcohol and/or drugs.

In 2011, it is estimated that 13,839 people will die in drunk-driving crashes. In Kansas last year there were approximately 154 DUI fatality crashes, accounting for about 40 percent of the state's total traffic deaths, according to the statement.

Traffic crashes are the greatest single cause of death for every age from 6 through 28, with nearly half of them being alcohol-related. The proportion of fatal alcohol-related crashes is about three times greater at night than during the day, the statement said.

A 2004 public opinion poll by Mothers Against Drunk Driving showed 87 percent of Americans support use of checkpoints to check for drivers who have been drinking. Checkpoints are an effective tool to combat the impaired driving problem and an effective way to check for an promote safety belt and child restraint use.