San Rafael Police Receives Grant for DUI Checkpoints

 The San Rafael Police Department was recently rewarded a $46,000 grant from the California Office of Traffic Safety to continue its anti-DUI program, which includes DUI checkpoints. 

San Rafael Police Spokesperson Margo Rohrbacher said the program aims to prevent deaths and injuries on San Rafael roads. The grant monies will be used to target “impaired driving offenders” and to “educate the public on the dangers of impaired driving.”

In 2001, San Rafael didn’t have any drunk or drugged driving fatalities, but 35 people were injured in related crashed, according to San Rafael Police officials.

“Crashes involving alcohol have been shown to drop by up to 20 percent when well-publicized checkpoints are conducted often enough,” Rorhrbacher wrote in a press release. “Checkpoints have proven to be the most effective of any of the DUI enforcement strategies, while yielding considerable cost savings of $6 for every $1 spent and are supported by nearly 90 percent of California drivers.”