Checkpoint stops 2,787 drivers, 17 cited for DUI

An overnight checkpoint that blocked traffic on the city's east side targeted drunken drivers.

Seventeen drivers on South Powers Boulevard were cited for DUI at the checkpoint that's part of the State of Colorado's 100 Days of Heat.

That's 17, out of 2,787 cars stopped in the 400 block of South Powers Boulevard.

The checkpoint, which ran from 9 p.m. Friday through 2:15 a.m. today, was a joint effort by Colorado State Patrol, Colorado Springs Police Department and Pikes Peak Community College officers.

Patrols aimed at stopping drunken drivers will continue throughout the city this weekend, police said.

Police say the stepped up enforcement is warranted because the Fourth of July weekend is the deadliest holiday for fatal crashes caused by divers who have been drinking.