St. Paul, MN (KROC-AM News) - Over 300 local law enforcement agencies and the Minnesota State Patrol will be conducting a crackdown on impaired drivers starting tomorrow (Friday) and running through September 3rd. The Minnesota Department of Public Safety received a grant from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration to fund overtime shifts for the law officer is participating in the enhanced enforcement campaign.

In announcing the crackdown, state officials noted that over 40 percent of the drivers arrested for DWI in 2015 had at least one previous drunk-driving conviction. Statistics show almost 266,000 drivers in the state have more than one DWI on their record.

State statistics also show Minnesota has made progress in the battle against drunk drivers. In 2007, the state recorded over 38,000 DWI arrests. Last year, the total was fewer than 23,500.

At the same time, the number of crashes and traffic fatalities involving motorists with one or more DWI offenses has been trending higher the past five years. The number of traffic deaths in cases where a motorist had a previous DWI in the previous five years has climbed from 23 and 2012 to 34 last year.

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