In the days leading up to New Year’s Eve 2008, local broadcast television demonstrated the power of our medium with a nationwide effort aimed at putting the brakes on drunk driving. A post-campaign Nielsen analysis showed that people who reported seeing a Project Roadblock spot that week were more likely to stop an impaired friend or relative from driving under the influence.

The Ad Council subsequently awarded its coveted “Silver Bell” Award to WBIR-TV (Knoxville, TN) for its support of the 2008 campaign. But Project Roadblock has become a most gratifying annual initiative for every local television broadcaster.

Now for the 2009 holiday season, we want to make Project Roadblock even bigger and better:

• We will debut a brand-new creative execution that will be exclusive to local broadcast television up until Jan. 1, 2010 and that targets women.


• Several spots DO NOT use SAG talent and are therefore sponsorable.


• The multiplatform capabilities of local broadcast television can be shown off with placement of Project Roadblock spots on your digital subchannels and using the expanded social networking component of the campaign, possibly linked to your website.

“Project Roadblock 2009: Local TV Puts the Brakes on Drunk Driving” features a voluntary PSA campaign to run on local broadcast stations during the week of Dec. 26, with a focused roadblock on New Year's Eve. The campaign is in addition to, not replacement of, the stations' other PSA commitments and is targeted to reach A18-34.

The 2009 campaign will utilize both the Ad Council's “Buzzed Driving is Drunk Driving” and “Friends Don't Let Friends Drive Drunk” ads. The spots come in :10, :15, and :25 (with a :05 tag), :30 and :60 second lengths. In the spots that include the :05 second tag, the tag will first show a slate with slogan and the Ad Council and U.S Department of Transportation logos. That slate will then dissolve into a second slate with the words “Project Roadblock: Local TV Puts the Brakes on Drunk Driving” with a blank space for insertion of the station's logo and web address if the station desires (see examples below). Please click the link below, “View Commercials and Distribution Info,” to view the full list of spots and to see which spots can be tagged.

Banners for the websites of participating stations are available as are localized drunk-driving statistics and consumer tips from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration that can be used in news stories as well as on websites.

Click on the Station Pledge Form below to commit your station to “Project Roadblock.”