State increases DUI enforcement, offers free Lyft rides during holiday season

In an effort to fight impaired driving over the holidays, state officials are launching two heightened DUI enforcement periods and are offering free Lyft rides to communities most affected by DUIs.

The first holiday DUI enforcement period began on Dec. 4 and ends on Monday. The second will be held from Dec. 29 to Jan. 2.

The Colorado Department of Transportation, Colorado State Patrol and 81 law enforcement agencies have signed on to increase DUI enforcement through patrols and sobriety checkpoints.

“The holidays should be a memorable time for our community, but not because it marks the loss of a loved one due to an impaired driving crash," said CSP Chief Matthew Packard.

327 arrested during Colorado’s Thanksgiving DUI enforcement period

"We will be actively looking for people who fail to plan for a sober ride after using drugs or alcohol.”

Over 100 law enforcement agencies arrested 572 impaired drivers throughout Colorado during last year’s holiday enforcement period.

As of Nov. 1, there have been 168 traffic fatalities involving an impaired driver in Colorado. That is an increase of 14% from 2019 despite significantly lower traffic volumes.

Officials suspect increased alcohol use during the pandemic as a reason for the collisions.

Health officials urge Coloradans to only celebrate holidays with household

To further discourage impaired driving, CDOT is partnering with Lyft to provide 1,000 $10 credit codes to Coloradans.

The state is distributing 200 ride credits at 10 a.m. every Thursday this month in cities that had the highest DUI fatalities in 2019: Denver, Colorado Springs and Thornton.

The next distribution will be for Thornton residents on Dec. 17, followed by Denver on Dec. 24 and Colorado Springs on Dec. 31.

Credits are given on a first-come-first-serve basis at GiftofLyft.com.