By The Sentinel, Cumberlink.com

HARRISBURG — The Pennsylvania State Police, PennDOT and the Liquor Control Board announced a new, statewide campaign to promote designated driving in an effort to keep drunk drivers off the road this holiday season.

The State Police commissioner, PLCB chairman and PennDOT executive deputy secretary joined with representatives of the John R. Elliott HERO Campaign for Designated Drivers to kick off the program aimed at promoting safe and sober driving in the commonwealth.

Pennsylvania is the fifth state to officially adopt the campaign, which is active in states from Massachusetts to Kentucky.

“Every single injury and death caused by drunk driving is totally preventable by not driving under the influence,” said State Police Commissioner Frank Noonan. “Don’t risk getting arrested for DUI or worse, for injuring or killing someone by getting behind the wheel of a car while intoxicated — a person’s driving ability can be impaired after only one drink and this impairment combined with driving can result in the unnecessary tragic loss of life.”

Bill Elliott and his wife Muriel started the HERO Campaign for Designated Drivers in memory of their son, U.S. Navy Ensign John R. Elliott, who was killed in a crash with a drunk driver in July 2000. While at the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, Md., Elliott was selected as a Human Education Resource Officer (HERO) to counsel and mentor other members of his company and was named “the outstanding HERO” of his graduating class. Elliott was killed two months after graduating from the academy.

“We are proud to bring the HERO Campaign to Pennsylvania and to work with our partners to prevent drunken driving tragedies like the one that took the life of our son,” Bill Elliott said. “We want to spare other families from suffering a similar loss.”

Multiple Pennsylvania agencies will promote the campaign and its message, “Be a HERO. Be a Designated Driver,” through highway digital message boards, posters in participating bars and restaurants and thousands of car window decals distributed at upcoming State Police DUI checkpoints.

“Drunk and drugged driving remains a major concern in Pennsylvania, and unfortunately this is completely preventable,” PennDOT Executive Deputy Secretary Brad Mallory said. “Each time someone doesn’t get behind the wheel impaired, or they serve as a designated driver, they’re honoring the memory of people we’ve lost to impaired driving and helping to prevent further tragedies.”

The HERO Campaign seeks to register a million designated drivers nationally through its website, www.herocampaign.org, and to make the use of designated drivers as automatic as wearing a seatbelt.