SAN ANTONIO – While millions of Texas drivers are hitting the roads for Fourth of July weekend, San Antonio police officers, Bexar County deputies and DPS troopers will be on patrol for suspected drivers who drive while intoxicated (DWI).
The Texas Department of Transportation’s Drive Sober campaign runs through July 13. According to TxDOT, there were 72 deaths because of DUI-related crashes in 2024 across San Antonio and the surrounding area.
The San Antonio Police Department also shared statistics with KSAT about DWI-related crashes and overall traffic deaths during previous Fourth of July weekends. SAPD’s data is from the July 3-6 time frame.
During the 2024 holiday weekend, SAPD reported five traffic deaths overall. One death was directly related to alcohol or drugs. In all, 16 major crashes were reported over those four days.
Between 2022 and 2024, however, the number of crashes has increased slightly from 14 to 16, according to SAPD records.
One of the worst Fourth of July holiday weekends on the roads in San Antonio was in July 2021.
During that year’s holiday weekend, there were seven deaths overall. Three of them were directly related to alcohol or drugs. In all, 27 major crashes were reported on that weekend.
Below are statistics for DWI crashes for the Fourth of July weekends over the last five years, per SAPD:
- 2020 – 16
- 2021 – 27
- 2022 – 14
- 2023 – 15
- 2024 – 16
Part of TxDOT’s campaign reminds drivers that getting a DUI can result in time-consuming legal hassles, jail time, loss of your driver’s license and fines and fees up to $17,000.
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