BETHLEHEM, Pa. — It was an event to make college students aware of how severely impacted they can become, driving while inebriated or distracted.
Buy the event did it while their minds were sober and focused enough to understand the ramifications of driving in such situations.
Moravian College students on Friday had that chance.
"The holiday season is when travel tends to increase and the potential for accidents skyrockets."State Transportation Department Press Officer Sean Brown
The event, featuring members of the Lehigh Valley DUI/Highway Safety Task Force and community partners, emphasized the importance of safe traveling to students just ahead of the holiday season.
State Transportation Department Press Officer Sean Brown said the timing is no coincidence. It's a time when travel tends to increase and the potential for accidents skyrockets.
The days around Thanksgiving tend to be a heavy travel season, and the night before the big holiday is one of the biggest times for drinking alcohol.
Beyond that, use of illicit drugs — or even medical marijuana — can cause significant issues.
According to the 2024 State Police report covering the Thanksgiving holiday weekend, officers arrested 552 individuals for driving under the influence — a slight increase over 2023’s 542 arrests.
However, the same report states DUI crashes dropped in 2024, from 73 the year prior to 64.
'It was weird'
Throughout the lobby just outside the cafeteria on the second floor of the Moravian College Haupert Union Building, students and visitors had the opportunity to try out a driving simulator.
It showed the effects of impaired or distracted driving using drunk goggles, alcohol IQ quizzes and more.
“Honestly, I thought I’d be able to do it. But my vision was so impaired, trying to even line up on the line wasn’t possible."Moravian freshman Jack Habash
“The students can drive the impaired version or distracted version, and it shows the different consequences — with real people, real law enforcement, real judges — of their actions,” Highway Safety Network District 5 Traffic Safety Coordinator Kelly Gerencher said.
“So we actually encourage them to maybe text and see how difficult it is, and then we also educate them as they're driving down the road.”
Students tested the drunk goggles by trying some basic tasks while their vision was drastically impaired — walking a straight line or trying to catch a ball thrown by a friend, for example.
“Honestly, I thought I’d be able to do it,” Moravian freshman Jack Habash said after trying the goggles.
“But my vision was so impaired, trying to even line up on the line wasn’t possible… It was weird.”
Habash, who said he had tried a similar exercise while in high school, said he believes such demonstrations and simulations are a great way to teach students about impaired or distracted driving.
'Hopefully we get out that message'
Freshman Samantha Collaro said she found the event to be “super helpful.”
“I think everyone should learn how to drive safe, and know the consequences of drinking and driving,” Collaro said.
“Not that you should be doing that anyway, but I think it’s important to learn and really educate yourself on these kind of things, because it does happen, unfortunately.”
"We have a goal of just reducing fatalities on the roadway and crashes, and any time that we can make our way slightly safer, that’s a win for us.”State Transportation Department Press Officer Sean Brown
Collaro said she tried the alcohol IQ test, and got two questions wrong.
“That was very surprising to me, the ones that I did get wrong,” she said.
Scoring well on the quiz earned students prizes, in addition to numerous other giveaways at the event — including free Narcan for emergency opioid overdose situations.
Brown said such events also have been held at Lehigh University, Lafayette College and other local schools.
With myriad options to get around safely — public transit, rideshares, taxis, designated drivers, etc. — there are no excuses to get behind the wheel in an unsafe condition, Brown said.
“Hopefully we get out that message, and if one person learns something, if they maybe rethink unsafe driving behavior, we consider that a win," he said.
"We have a goal of just reducing fatalities on the roadway and crashes, and any time that we can make our way slightly safer, that’s a win for us.”
