The Pennsylvania DUI Association is conducting a "Fourth of July Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over" campaign, including roving DUI patrols and checkpoints to be conducted by local highway safety networks, such as the North Central Highway Safety Network.

The NCHSN is headquartered in Pottsville and partners with the Central PA Highway Safety Network in Erie and the Southwest Regional Traffic Safety Network in Bridgeville to cover 26 Pennsylvania counties, including Carbon, Schuylkill, Berks, Lehigh, Northampton and Monroe, the entire Times News coverage area.Last year, there were 256 alcohol-related crashes resulting in 11 fatalities from Friday, June 30, to Sunday, July 9. This marked a decrease from 2012, when there were 355 alcohol-related crashes and 20 fatalities. Also during the holiday period last year there were 69 drug-related crashes and four fatalities in those crashes.Blood alcohol content is the concentration of alcohol in blood. It is usually measured as mass per volume. A number of factors come into play regarding the consumption and reduction (burn-off) rates of different people.Factors include the sex of the drinker, differing metabolism rates, various health issues and the combination of medications taken, drinking frequency, amount of food in the stomach and small intestine and when it was eaten, and the time elapsed between the last drink and the test. The legal limit, for adults, is 0.08 percent.The "one drink" standard is a 1.25-ounce shot of 80-proof liquor (even if it's mixed with nonalcoholic drinks), a 4-ounce glass of wine, or 10 ounces of regular beer. For the majority of people, three drinks in a two-hour period is enough to put them near or over the legal limit, according to department of motor vehicle charts.According to state police Commissioner Frank Noonan, in 2013, Pennsylvania State Police troopers arrested 411 people for driving under the influence from July 3-7."Please never get behind the wheel if you have been drinking you are gambling with your life and the lives of others if you take this chance," Noonan said. "In addition to refusing to drink and drive, I also encourage all drivers to buckle up and to be certain that all passengers do the same," Noonan said.