United States Department of Transportation United States Department of Transportation

St. Patrick's Day

About

Key Dates:

  • March 9-17:  St. Patrick's Day Campaign
  • March 17: St. Patrick's Day

Relevant, timely and seasonal messaging can help boost traffic safety communication efforts. 

We offer themed material for St. Patrick’s Day that encourages people to not get behind the wheel after drinking and to plan for a safe, sober ride home.

Facts

  • There were 290 people killed in alcohol-impaired-driving crashes during the St. Patrick’s Day holidays 6 p.m. March 16 – 5:59 a.m. March 18) between 2018-2022. During the 2022 St. Patrick’s Day holiday, 74 people died in alcohol-impaired-driving crashes.
  • Drunk male drivers were involved in fatal crashes at a higher rate (29%) during the 2022 St. Patrick’s Day holiday compared to female drivers (14%).
  • Young drivers ages 21-34 accounted for the highest percentage (34%) of alcohol-impaired drivers involved in fatal traffic crashes during the 2022 St. Patrick’s Day holiday.
  • Nighttime driving during the 2022 St. Patrick’s Day holiday was significantly more dangerous than daytime driving, with 38% of drivers involved in fatal traffic crashes between the hours of 6 p.m. and 5:59 a.m. being drunk. Almost half (47%) of drivers involved in fatal crashes between the hours of midnight and 2:59 a.m. were drunk.
  • The rate of drunk passenger car drivers and motorcyclists involved in fatal crashes during the 2022 St. Patrick’s Day holiday were 34% and 41%, respectively. 

For general drunk-driving facts, visit our Drunk Driving section.

More

Social Media

This social media playbook contains sample social media content. Download this guide for instructions on posting the below playbook graphics to Facebook, X and Instagram. The content is designed for easy posting and seamless integration into your current social media strategy.

Additional sample social media posts are also available for download. Images often help boost the engagement on social posts. Our image library, linked below in the Resource section, has a variety of images that you can associate with these sample social media posts.

Talking Points

We've prepared talking points related to this topic. After downloading, we encourage you to add local stats and facts to the document. 

Earned Media

We've produced sample news releases that can be used for media outreach.

Variable Message Board

GET A SOBER

RIDE HOME TO

UR POT OF GOLD

A PINT CAN MEAN

TROUBLES UR WAY

PLAN SOBER RIDE

FEEL THE LUCK

OF BEING ALIVE

DRIVE SOBER

DESIGNATE YOUR

SOBER DRIVER

BEFORE PADDYS

LIFE ITSELF IS

YOUR POT O GOLD

DRIVE SOBER

BLEED GREEN

NOT RED FIND A

SOBER DRIVER

A SOBER RIDE IS

AN EASY FIND

THIS ST PADDYS

Download All Text

Graphics

Static
Animated

Asset Type

Static
Lucky Keys | 1080x1350 | Static Facebook, X, Instagram
O' Boy | 1080x1350 | Static Facebook, X, Instagram
Animated
Lucky Keys | 1080x1920 | Animated Vertical Video
O' Boy | 1080x1920 | Animated Vertical Video

Additional Resources