DUI/Driver's License Checkpoint Friday Night on Orange in Downtown Redlands

A five-hour DUI/Driver's License checkpoint is scheduled Friday night and early Saturday in downtown Redlands.

The checkpoint is planned 10 p.m. Aug. 31 through 3 a.m. Sept. 1 in northbound lanes of Orange Street between Stuart and Pearl avenues, a city spokesman said.

Targeted DUI saturation patrols are also scheduled during the evenings of Saturday Sept. 1 and Sunday Sept. 2, Redlands spokesman Carl Baker said.

Two recent DUI checkpoints in Redlands resulted in multiple arrests, Baker said.

On Aug. 24, 140 vehicles passed through a checkpoint in the northbound lanes of San Bernardino Avenue at Orange Street.

"Five drivers were arrested for DUI, one person was arrested for domestic violence, one driver was cited for possessing an open container of alcohol and three drivers were cited for driving without a valid license," Baker said.

On Aug. 25, 50 vehicles passed through a checkpoint in southbound lanes of Wabash Avenue at Brockton Avenue, Baker said. Five people were arrested for DUI.

People ages 21 to 24 are considered the age group with the highest percentage of alcohol-impaired-driving fatalities, Baker said.

"On average there is one alcohol impaired driving-related fatality every 51 minutes across America," Redlands Police Sgt. Ricky Smith said. "Research has shown that high-visibility enforcement like the 'Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over' campaign reduces alcohol-impaired driving fatalities by as much as 20 percent."

Redlands police are taking part in a county, state and federal effort to reduce drunken driving this Labor Day weekend.

Checkpoint and saturation patrols in Redlands are funded in part by the California Office of Traffic Safety and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

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