Blanket Patrols

Also called saturation patrols, roving DWI patrols, or dedicated police patrols, blanket patrols are specifically designed to identify drunk drivers and are legal in all 50 states. Combining the desirable features of both spot checks and routine police patrols, these campaigns are often characterized by a large number of officers concentrating their patrol time on a given area for a set time period. During that time, the police officers stop drivers for any traffic offense but usually with a particular focus on drunk driving. The perception of risk acts as a deterrent, as it does with sobriety checkpoints, but blanket patrols can offer greater staffing flexibility than sobriety checkpoints

According to the National Hardcore Drunk Driver Project Survey, blanket patrols are used in 44 states and three territories..

Measured in arrests per working hour, blanket patrols are viewed as the most effective method of apprehending offenders. Within a limited geographical area, these patrols may be an efficient and effective means of apprehending DWI repeat offenders because officers are able to identify potentially impaired drivers by observing driving performance and stop only those who appear to have been drinking (Health Canada 1997). Saturation of an area also makes it more difficult for impaired drivers to avoid detection.

Minnesota’s Operation NightCAP (Night-time Concentrated Alcohol Patrol) is a unique enforcement program in which monthly blanket patrols are conducted by the State Patrol in partnership with county and local law enforcement agencies. Public information and media efforts are a part of each blanket patrol. Overall, NightCAP has proven to be one of the most effective federal traffic safety programs currently underway in Minnesota. For fiscal year 2001, the program resulted in 96 total blanket patrols, 13,681 vehicles stopped and 566 DWI arrests.

Project Zero is New York State’s Zone Enforcement Reduction Operation, a statewide blanket patrol initiative targeting impaired drivers through aggressive enforcement and public information and education campaigns. State and local police and sheriff departments combine personnel and resources to operate in concert on predetermined dates and times. Working on roadways with a high volume of alcohol-related crashes, they target all vehicle and traffic law violations, with a special emphasis on drunk driving offenses. Strong public information efforts aimed at increasing the public’s perception of risk are conducted both before and after Project Zero initiatives. Associated enforcement strategies, such as warrant sweeps for DWI-related offenses and underage purchase violations, are conducted in tandem with Project Zero patrols. More information about Project Zero is available from the New York State Division of Criminal Justice Services, Office of Public Safety.

National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. June 2001. Saturation Patrols and Sobriety Checkpoints: A How-to-Guide for Planning and Publicizing Impaired Driving Enforcement Efforts. Washington, DC: National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

Health Canada. 1997. DWI Repeat Offenders: A Review and Synthesis of the Literature. Ottawa, Canada: Office of Alcohol, Drugs and Dependency Issues.