By Lookout Staff

June 19, 2012 -- Santa Monica police will conduct a checkpoint Friday in an effort to identify DUI drivers and those behind the wheel without a valid license and remove them from the street, police officials said.

Officers will be looking for signs motorists impaired by alcohol or drugs as they pass through the checkpoint at an undisclosed location within the city limits, police said.

"Drivers caught driving impaired can expect jail, license suspension, and insurance increases, as well as fines, fees, DUI classes, court probation and other expenses that can exceed $10,000," said Sgt. Richard Lewis, the Police Department spokesman.

The checkpoint is part of an ongoing campaign to reduce the number of persons killed and injured in alcohol involved crashes, police said.

“Over the course of the past year, DUI drivers were involved in 12 collisions, which injured 19 people,” said Santa Monica Police Lieutenant Jay Trisler.  

According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), "checkpoints have provided the most effective documented results of any of the DUI enforcement strategies, while also yielding considerable cost savings of $6 for every $1 spent."

The Santa Monica Police Department advises that those who drink should have a designated driver or call a taxicab to take them safely home.

Funding for the operation is provided by a grant from the California Office of Traffic Safety, through the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.