Montana Increases DUI Patrols over New Year Holiday

According to stats, Montana is tied for LAST in the nation for DUI's. 50th out of 50. Not something to be proud of. We blame it on a number of things... A history of "work hard, play hard" and socially acceptable drinking and driving, the neighborhood bar being the only big gathering place for miles in many small Montana towns, the "cowboy culture", high rates of alcoholism etc. The reasons we  - as a state - seem to think it's okay to toss back some drinks and then jump in the car is long. And while we have lot's of theories on why we do it, none of them are good or justifiable.

I think the acceptance of drinking and driving in Montana is slowly (finally) trending toward not being okay. Slowly, attitudes are changing. It's not okay to drive drunk.

Montana Highway Patrol and other law enforcement departments have ramped up enforcement and patrols through the New Year holiday. Sure, they only catch a fraction of drunk drivers, but it's another thing to think about if you are considering getting behind the wheel over the holiday. A DUI, an accident, or (God forbid) a highway fatality, is way more costly than an Uber.