The Arlington County Police Department is hosting an anti-drunk driving event this week ahead of this year’s Halloween celebrations.
Tomorrow (Friday) police officers will kick off the event highlighting what alcohol does to motor skills at 8 p.m., at the intersection of N. Hudson Street and Wilson Boulevard in Clarendon.
To make room for the event, ACPD is planning to close N. Hudson Street from Wilson Boulevard to 13th Street N. between 7-11 p.m. Friday night and post temporary no-parking signs in the area.
“The Arlington County Police Department is reminding citizens that nothing is scarier on Halloween night than an impaired driver,” the county wrote on its website. “Don’t let drunk driving haunt your celebrations — if you plan to drink, designate a sober driver, whether it’s a friend, relative, taxi, rideshare or public transportation.”
The most recent data available from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) indicates that 158 people were killed by drunk drivers on Halloween between 2013 and 2017. About half of those deaths included the drivers themselves, but the federal agency notes that three pedestrians were also killed in 2017.
One way Halloween party goers can secure a designated driver is through the Washington Regional Alcohol Program’s annual Sober Ride program, which is offering coupons for a Lyft home this weekend.
The coupons codes will be posted on the nonprofit’s website this Saturday, October 26 at 9 p.m. Lyft users can use the codes to knock $15 off the price of a ride home between Saturday at 10 p.m. and Sunday at 4 a.m.