The Oklahoman & NewsOK

Oklahoma highway safety | News OK

NewsOK BRANDINSIGHT

Connecting local experts and business leaders with the NewsOK Audience

BrandInsight provides a place for local organizations and companies to connect directly with the NewsOK audience and The Oklahoman readers by publishing sponsored native advertising articles of interest on the NewsOK digital platforms and to participate in the resulting conversation. BrandInsight content may be produced by the organizations or our BrandInsight content studio. To learn how to participate in BrandInsight, email us at brand-insight@oklahoman.com.

Oklahoma Highway Safety Office
BrandInsight

The Oklahoma Highway Safety Office (OHSO) was established in 1967 by the Oklahoma Legislature, as a direct result of the National Highway Safety Act of 1966, to combat an alarming increase in the number and severity of traffic crashes and fatalities. The OHSO is under the umbrella of the Department of Public Safety. The OHSO works closely with local governmental organizations, state agencies, law enforcement agencies, and others to develop State Highway Safety Plan (pdf) and programs to address highway safety issues. The programs are Federally funded through the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). Most programs and activities fall into the areas of traffic safety education, training, and enforcement enhancement.

A medical marijuana card does not legitimize impaired driving

Even before Oklahomans approved State Question 788 in June, the state had a serious problem with drugged drivers on the road.

With the passage, Oklahoma law enforcement is now emphasizing that a medical marijuana card does not mean you are allowed to operate a vehicle...

Health Michaela Marx Wheatley Aug 13, 2018

On the road or on the water: Operators headed for trouble when drinking and driving

Who’s heading to the lake for the Fourth of July? For many of us the upcoming holiday means boating, grilling out, and fun in the sun. For some, an ice-cold adult beverage is often part of this picture.

However, too many Oklahoma drivers get behind the wheel impaired after a day on the...

News Michaela Marx Wheatley Jun 28, 2018

The next life saved by a seat belt could be yours

Nationwide enforcement campaign to remind people to wear their seat belts kicks off.

Most understand the lifesaving value of seat belts – the national use rate is at 90.1 percent. However, Oklahomans still lag behind with annual averages stubbornly staying at 84 to 86 percent in...

News Michaela Marx Wheatley May 21, 2018

ENDUI: Bad St. Patrick’s Day decisions may haunt drivers for life

Oklahoma law enforcement agencies across the state are preparing to help prevent similar incidents during the upcoming St. Patrick’s Day celebration.

News Michaela Marx Wheatley Mar 13, 2018

ENDUI: What to say to an impaired driver to stop them from driving

Often a party host, server at a bar, or a friend may be the last obstacle between somebody who has been drinking or consuming drugs and them getting behind the wheel. Be that person this New year's Eve.

Life Michaela Marx Wheatley Dec 27, 2017

Impaired driving on New Year’s Eve: How it touches us all

Ten Oklahomans lost their lives on Oklahoma’s roads during last year’s New Year’s holiday. Five of these fatalities occurred in four separate alcohol-related crashes, according to the Oklahoma Highway Safety Office.

News Michaela Marx Wheatley Dec 27, 2017

College coaches, ENDUI officials urge fans to make safe tailgate choices

Some may assume that the coaches of Oklahoma’s flagship football teams wouldn’t agree on much. But both OSU head coach Mike Gundy and OU head coach Lincoln Riley agree that driving to and from the games should be safe for everybody. “We all love going to football games,” said OSU’s Gundy. “When...

Football Michaela Marx Wheatley Sep 15, 2017

Knowledge saves lives: Children rely on us when it comes to car safety

Dr. Ryan Brown, an emergency medicine and child abuse pediatrics physician at The Children's Hospital at OU Medical Center, fights every day to save the lives of young car crash victims. In many cases, the difference between life and death is a proper car seat. “There are a lot of urban myths...

Travel Michaela Marx Wheatley Sep 17, 2017

Country roads aren’t ‘safe haven’ for impaired drivers

In 2016, a total of 185 alcohol or drug-related fatalities occurred on Oklahoma’s roads; 64 of these fatalities happened in urban areas, while 121 of them happened in rural areas.

Public safety Michaela Marx Wheatley Aug 14, 2017

Oklahoma among states with highest hot car death rate

It’s a heartbreaking, unspeakable tragedy: Hot car deaths of infants and toddlers. When we hear reports of children dying from heatstroke while strapped into their car seats, we are appalled and quickly ask “Who would leave their precious child in a hot car?” But, it has happened to people from...

Travel Michaela Marx Wheatley Jul 28, 2017

DUI and the Fourth of July: 4 facts every Oklahoman should know

While we’re all celebrating the nation’s birthday this week, you might want to think twice about getting behind the wheel after throwing back a few beers at the lake or enjoying spiked lemonade at a picnic. This iconic American holiday is also one of the deadliest holidays of the year because of...

Travel Michaela Marx Wheatley Jun 29, 2017

Staying alive: Eliminating impaired driving vital to motorcyclists’ safety

Oklahoma Highway Patrol Trooper Brian Medeiros and Sgt. Curtis Thompson of the Edmond Police Department are living the dream. They get paid to ride. Both are veteran members of their respective agencies’ motorcycle units. “I wanted to do this ever since I watched ‘CHiPs’ on television when I was...

Travel Michaela Marx Wheatley Jun 21, 2017

ENDUI: Heading into the 100 deadliest days for motorists

We are heading into the 100 deadliest days for motorists – roughly the period between Memorial Day and Labor Day, which include seven of the top 10 deadliest driving days of the year. The odds of getting into a serious collision increase significantly during the summer months, according to the...

Holidays Michaela Marx Wheatley May 24, 2017

‘Buckling up’ makes difference between life or death

From mid-May through the beginning of June, statewide law enforcement agencies are stepping up enforcement to crack down on motorists who aren’t wearing their seat belts. Across the nation events like this have been held for almost 20 years. And it has been effective. Before 1980, usage...

Travel Michaela Marx Wheatley May 16, 2017

Distracted driving: 85 people killed in work zones in five years

When Cari Ledbetter, a 23-year-old teacher’s aide from Chickasaw, gets married this summer, her father Gary won’t be there to walk her down the aisle. Ledbetter was only four years old when her dad, an Oklahoma Department of Transportation worker, was struck by a vehicle while he was picking up...

Travel Michaela Marx Wheatley Apr 30, 2017

Higher seat belt use rates could have saved 75 Oklahomans last year

Laswanique Gray’s life was saved by her seat belt. A few years ago, on the way home from college in Arkansas for spring break, she overcorrected and lost control of her car, resulting in a massive crash on I-40. “My car spun out, rolled several times across the grass median and collided with a...

Public safety Michaela Marx Wheatley Nov 14, 2016

ENDUI this New Year’s Eve: How Uber and others are changing the game

The advent of smartphone-based, ride-sharing applications has revolutionized how we get around, especially after a drink or two. Advocates point to the ease of use and lower wait times, while others argue that proper government oversight is necessary to protect ride-share passengers. However,...

Business Michaela Marx Wheatley Dec 27, 2016

The real life horror of Halloween night: Troopers warn of deadly mix of impaired driving and little trick-or-treaters

Last Halloween, an Oklahoma woman accused of driving while intoxicated crashed into another family’s car, causing a crash that left a 10-year-old boy with a traumatic brain injury. An Owasso driver was traveling in a sport utility vehicle Oct. 31 and failed to yield from a stop sign near Owasso....

Public safety Michaela Marx Wheatley Oct 26, 2016

Safe roads on game day: ENDUI officials urge fans to make smart tailgate choices

Football is a huge part of Oklahoma culture. Unfortunately, alcohol-related traffic crashes are a negative side effect of football season – or many other sporting events for that matter. “I feel, especially in Oklahoma, when someone thinks of a football game tailgating is automatically implied,”...

Football Michaela Marx Wheatley Sep 17, 2016

Staying safe on Labor Day weekend

As we are nearing Labor Day many families will try to make the most of the final days of summer with one more vacation or trip to the lake. Though making memories is great, it is also important to stay safe. Unfortunately, this time of the year has a high occurrence of crashes and other...

Public safety Michaela Marx Wheatley Aug 15, 2016

Oklahoma metro areas and lakes are ‘hot spots’ on ENDUI heat mapping technology this Fourth of July

As Oklahomans prepare for the July Fourth weekend, law enforcement teams are preparing for the holiday, too. The deadliest days on Oklahoma roads are July 3 and 6, according to Oklahoma Highway Safety Office crash data. “We believe that any impaired driving fatality is a preventable fatality,”...

Holidays Michaela Marx Wheatley Jun 29, 2016

ENDUI program makes 1,000th impaired driving arrest in Oklahoma

In late May the statewide Impaired Driving Prevention Enforcement Teams, a function of the ENDUI program, hit a major milestone in its 15 month history.

“We’re at over 1,000 DUI arrests which is a crazy number to me,” said Oklahoma Highway Trooper Derek Griffey.

However, as...

Blog Michaela Marx Wheatley Jun 13, 2016

While DUI fatalities are declining, Memorial Day proves deadly on Oklahoma roads

Impaired driving fatalities are highest during the Memorial Day, Labor Day and Fourth-of-July weekends.

With more holiday travelers including a significantly higher number of impaired drivers on the road, nearly twice the number of traffic deaths occur during the summer...

Public safety Michaela Marx Wheatley May 23, 2016

Mock DUI fatality drives impact of impaired driving home to OKC metro students

The body of a popular Midwest City High School football player lies motionless in the streets. An EMT checks his vital signs, checks them again. Then he pulls out a white tarp and covers the body. Meanwhile other emergency personnel cut teenagers out of three vehicles – each of them bloodied...

Education Michaela Marx Wheatley Apr 17, 2016

Six things Oklahomans should know about DUI and St. Patrick’s Day

St. Patrick’s Day is not a lucky day for drivers. Unfortunately, March 17 has become one of deadliest holidays on roads all across the nation and Oklahoma law enforcement officials warn that choosing to drive impaired this holiday could carry consequences far worse than a nasty hangover.

...

Health Michaela Marx Wheatley Mar 16, 2016

Crash victim’s daughter fighting for tougher DUI laws for repeat offenders

The night her mother died Melanie Berry wrangled her kids off to bed. It was Labor Day weekend 2013, a time for family and relaxing, a weekend for boating at the lake, and a night she hasn’t stopped reliving since.

As her other three children drifted off to sleep, Berry’s two-year-old...

Edmond Michaela Marx Wheatley Feb 24, 2016

Young adults remain most at-risk group for DUI despite downward trend

In recent years, alcohol and drug prevention efforts have made great strides in curbing impaired driving, but despite improvements, one age group remains a tough nut to crack both on Oklahoma’s roads and nationwide.

“A few months ago, a video of a Texas college student driving a pink...

College Michaela Marx Wheatley Jan 24, 2016

ENDUI unveils new online Oklahoma Sobriety Checkpoint Finder pinpointing DUI checkpoints

Oklahoma’s ENDUI campaign is rolling out a new feature on its website that shows the locations and results of sobriety checkpoints and saturation patrols.

The Oklahoma Sobriety Checkpoint Finder is now available at www.enduiok.com.

The tool is not for impaired drivers to...

Public safety Michaela Marx Wheatley Dec 15, 2015

Pot on the roads: High drivers exhibit different driving behaviors, but are just as threatening to Oklahoma road safety as drunk drivers

As more states legalize marijuana for recreational use, concern rises about the risk of people getting behind the wheel while high. While many supporters point to the potential positive impact on economics that legalization in Oklahoma could hold, law enforcement officers...

Illegal drugs Michaela Marx Wheatley Nov 17, 2015

Scary but real Halloween DUI facts

Public safety officials want to keep trick-or-treaters of all ages safe on Oklahoma’s roads this Halloween. The first step is to ENDUI.

Life Michaela Marx Wheatley Oct 28, 2015

Increased travel and farewell to summer parties make Labor Day weekend dangerous for motorcyclists

Motorcyclists are among the most vulnerable traffic participants, and their chances to be seriously injured or killed in a crash increase with anyone who chooses to drink and drive this weekend.

One man who knows this all too well is Tulsa Police Department crime analyst Kyle...

Brandinsight Michaela Marx Wheatley Sep 4, 2015

DUI with kids in the car more common than you think on Oklahoma’s roads

As kids are returning to school this month, we are reminded that children are often the most vulnerable traffic participants – especially if alcohol or drugs are involved.

In June, the case of two Texas parents who let their 13-year-old daughter drive them home after a night of drinking...

News Michaela Marx Wheatley Aug 24, 2015

The cost of DUI: Broken bones, shattered lives and huge medical bills

Jodene Lopresto nearly lost her life when a DUI driver plowed into her on her way to work in April 2014. Lopresto is still battling to reclaim her life.

Brandinsight Michaela Marx Wheatley Jul 23, 2015

Dads who lost their kids urge Oklahomans to ENDUI

As dads everywhere celebrate Father’s Day, three Oklahoma men face the holiday without their children, mourning young lives destroyed by driving under the influence.In support of Oklahoma’s ENDUI campaign to stop impaired driving, they shared their stories hoping to reach drivers before they make...

Brandinsight Michaela Marx Wheatley Jun 19, 2015

Dangerous mix of hot weather and alcohol is impacting Oklahoma’s roads, lakes

The summer season usually offers the best weather and driving conditions – dry roads, excellent visibility, and longer daylight hours. However, a higher volume of holiday travelers, including a higher number of alcohol-impaired drivers, cause nearly twice the number of automotive deaths during...

News Michaela Marx Wheatley May 21, 2015