Despite the winter holidays' reputation for revelry, more people die on our nation's roads due to drinking and driving during summer holidays than during those during the colder months, according Dr. Michael Garr, associate professor of sociology at Wilkes University in Wilkes-Barre, Pa.
"During the summer holidays the average daily number of automobile deaths that are alcohol-related is 102," he says. "This compares to 67 as the average number of alcohol-related deaths during the three winter holidays."
According to The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's most recent report, containing data from 1982 to 2001, the Fourth of July has the highest number of alcohol-related fatalities per day.
"During the one-day Fourth of July period in 2001, 128 people died in alcohol-related accidents," says Garr, who studies drunken driving accidents, sobriety checkpoints, and alcohol use in social settings. "While over 280 died in alcohol-related accidents over Memorial Day weekend, it occurred over a three-day period, resulting in an average one-day accident rate of 94. During each day of the Labor Day weekend, the average number of deaths per day was 84."
Ironically, the holiday most noted for drinking -- New Year's -- has the smallest number of alcohol-related deaths at 61 in 2001. Thanksgiving and Christmas had significantly fewer deaths, too, only 77 and 81, respectively.
Garr notes that holiday alcohol-related deaths are on the increase. "The Fourth of July, in particular, saw an increase to 128 alcohol-related deaths in 2001 up from 83 in 1998 -- a 54 percent increase," he says.
"It may seem surprising that summer holidays are so consistently higher in their number of deaths compared to winter holidays, but really it's not. Anything that increases drinking and driving as separate activities are likely to increase drinking and driving as a combined activity."
Summer weather -- which is drinking and driving-friendly -- is to blame, suggests Garr. "People are more likely to drink during the summer months," he says. "The weather is hotter, increasing thirst, and holiday celebrations are often held outdoors and are often all-day events. Drinking may start earlier in the day and last longer than winter holidays."
Warm weather also makes it easier for folks to get behind the wheel and drive to parks and other public places where surveillance of drinking is less than in restaurants or bars, or even at home, he adds.
"When you combine additional driving with additional drinking, you inevitably get greater DUI," he says.
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