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While impaired driving -- whether due to alcohol, drugs or both -- is a year-round danger on the roadways, late summer and the Labor Day holiday period are among the deadliest times of the year for crashes and fatalities involving impaired drivers, the Michigan State Police warned.
From 2021 to 2025, the state had a total of 46 drivers killed in traffic crashes over the Labor Day holiday weekends. In those crashes, 39.1% of the drivers killed were alcohol- and/or drug-impaired, according to the Michigan State Police Criminal Justice Information Center.
Of the 1,002 fatal crashes that occurred across the state in 2025, 248, or 24.8%, involved alcohol and 195, or 19.5%, involved drugs.
The "Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over" campaign that begins today and runs through Labor Day on Sept. 7 will have increased enforcement as well as a statewide paid media campaign about the dangers of driving impaired, the MSP advised in a news release. During the enforcement, the MSP, along with local law enforcement agencies across Michigan, will encourage motorists to celebrate the late summer and upcoming holiday weekend with safe-driving decisions.
"Choosing to drive after consuming alcohol or drugs puts you, your passengers and everyone around you at serious risk," Alicia Sledge, director of the Michigan Office of Highway Safety Planning, or OHSP, said in a news release. "We urge people to make the right choice and find a sober ride home if they intend to take substances that impair driving."
While impaired driving continues to be a problem on the state's roadways, there is positive news, Sledge said: alcohol-involved fatalities decreased to 264 in 2025, a 14% drop from the 307 deaths in 2024; and drug-involved fatalities fell to 210, a 23% decrease from the 272 deaths in 2024.
"Impaired driving is still a serious issue, but seeing these numbers move in the right direction is encouraging," Sledge said. "The drop in the number of fatalities shows that outreach and enforcement efforts under the SAFER by 2030 initiative are having a positive impact."
SAFER -- Statewide Action to Reduce Fatalities Encountered on our Roadways by 2030 -- is a collaborative effort among state agencies and traffic safety partners to reduce fatalities on Michigan roadways 30% by 2030, emphasizing the three focus areas that save lives: Awareness, Engagement, and Enforcement.
During the enforcement, police officers will be on the lookout for motorists under the influence of drugs and alcohol. In Michigan, it is illegal to drive with a blood-alcohol concentration of .08 or higher, although drivers can be arrested at any BAC level if an officer believes they are impaired.
The "Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over" enforcement campaign, administered by the OHSP, is supported with federal traffic safety funds provided by the U.S. Department of Transportation, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. More information is available on the OHSP impaired-driving webpage, https://www.michigan.gov/msp/divisions/ohsp/safety-programs/impaired-driving.