Marijuana and alcohol spike during holidays has Kansas officials warning 'drive sober'

Increased use of alcohol, marijuana and other drugs during the winter holiday season has authorities warning Kansans to "drive sober or get pulled over."

The Kansas Department of Transportation and Kansas Highway Patrol, along with other officials, launched the traffic safety campaign on Wednesday with a news conference at Washburn University. It lasts through the end of the month.

"The purpose of our gathering today is to kick off the drive sober or get pulled over national holiday mobilization campaign," said Gary Herman, the KDOT behavioral safety manager. "We do this to prevent the tragic deaths that happen on our roads related to alcohol impairment."

Kansas troopers want to prevent fatal DUI crashes

KDOT secretary Calvin Reed said he is convinced media and enforcement campaigns "have caused a societal shift towards zero tolerance of drunk driving and impaired driving" and remain an important traffic safety tool.

But Herman said it is difficult to make the campaign actionable.

"Our message is going to fall on deaf ears for those that need to hear it," he said. "That is the challenge for us, is to change the behavior of people that drink and drive or use illegal drugs and drive."

⁠KDOT statistics from the drive to zero crash data dashboard show 125 people died in impaired-driving related crashes in Kansas 2022. December had the second-most of any month at 14, behind only June's 15. The dashboard's only reported impairment-related fatal crash in Topeka in 2022 came on Christmas day.

"As much as we love the holidays, we also know that this is one of the most challenging times of the year to be a driver in Kansas," Reed said. "You think about the lighting situations in the evening, increased traffic and really just all that's going on in terms of weather out there, it is just a challenging time of year to drive. So December is traditionally a very dangerous month on Kansas roadways."

Reed said it is "heartbreaking" that there were 152 crashes in Kansas last December that involved impaired driving, resulting in 75 injuries and nine deaths.

"It goes beyond statistics," he said. "What we're really talking about are personal losses, and each of those are very tragic to families, friends and communities. The Kansas Highway Patrol and other law enforcement agencies make it clear that there will be no tolerance when stopping someone for impaired driving. They have no choice; the consequences are too great."

Col. Erik Smith, the Highway Patrol superintendent, said the goal is to save lives and prevent harm to communities.

"If you ask any state trooper, one of the worst parts about our job is to tell someone their loved one isn't coming home, that they were killed in traffic crash," Smith said. "It's even worse when it happens during the holiday season."

Drinking and drug use increases during Christmas season

"Wide consumption of alcohol, and increasingly marijuana, have become mainstays in the celebration of winter holidays," KDOT said in its media advisory.

UCLA Health reported that alcohol consumption spikes during the winter holidays, as do the chances of being involved in a DUI crash. Research supported by the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism found that alcohol and marijuana use by young adults spiked in December — aside from April, which features the 4/20 marijuana holiday, marijuana use is highest in December.

"One of the statistics that we know is that the holidays are stressful, and people go to their drug of choice to relieve that stress," Herman told The Capital-Journal. "So there is increased marijuana use around the holidays, and maybe the casual user will become more of a frequent user over the holidays."

Herman said Kansas Bureau of Investigation laboratory results show marijuana is increasingly contributing to wrecks in Kansas.

"Marijuana pretty much is available in all of our bordering states except Nebraska," he said. "So we have seen with the lab tests from the KBI an uptick in our crashes and our arrest for impaired while under the influence of marijuana."

"People have a misconception about marijuana," Herman added. "They think that it doesn't impair like alcohol. They think that it makes them better drivers. All of the research to date shows those are not true, that marijuana impairs your functioning just like alcohol does. ... People who think that it's OK to smoke and drive are wrong."

Teresa Clounch, Washburn's associated vice president of student life and dean of students, urged students "to be safe during the holiday season."

The White House has also taken note of increased impaired riving during the holiday season. President Joe Biden proclaimed December as National Impaired Driving Prevention Month.

"As we head into the holiday seasons, we urge Americans everywhere to do the right thing," Biden said in the proclamation. "If you plan on drinking, arrange a sober ride home in advance; ride-sharing apps have made getting home safely easier than ever. If you have used any substance, never get behind the wheel. If you see someone — a friend, loved one, colleague, or anyone else — putting themselves or others at risk, offer to help. It matters. You could save a life."

Herman said there is good news that fatalities from wrecks are down 7% year to date, sitting at 358 as of Wednesday.

"But that's not a number," he said. "Those are people ... We're not trying to lower stats, we're trying to reduce the victimization that goes on across our state."

Jason Alatidd is a statehouse reporter for the Topeka Capital-Journal. He can be reached by email at jalatidd@gannett.com. Follow him on X @Jason_Alatidd.

This article originally appeared on Topeka Capital-Journal: Kansas has drive sober campaign amid holiday alcohol, marijuana spike