SOURCE: wrap.org
CONTACT: Kurt Gregory Erickson
President
PHONE: W. 703-893-0461
MOBILE. 703-625-2303
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
April 18, 2017
CINCO DE MAYO SOBERRIDE
CAMPAIGN LAUNCHED TO DETER
DUI IN GREATER WASHINGTON
NEARLY ONE-THIRD OF U.S. HIGHWAY DEATHS ON
CINCO DE MAYO INVOLVE DRUNK DRIVERS
Washington, D.C., April 18 – Preparing to combat that time of year when, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), nearly a third (31%) of all U.S. traffic deaths involve drunk drivers*, free Lyft rides will be offered to deter impaired driving throughout the Washington-metropolitan area on Cinco de Mayo (May 5th).
Offered by the nonprofit Washington Regional Alcohol Program (WRAP), the 2017 Cinco de Mayo SoberRide® program – now in its third year — will be in operation beginning at 7:00 pm on Friday, May 5, 2017 and continue until 4:00 am on Saturday, May 6, 2017 as a way to keep local roads safe from impaired drivers during this traditionally high-risk holiday.
During this nine-hour period, area residents age 21 and older celebrating with alcohol may download Lyft to their phones, then enter the code CINCODC in the app’s “Promo” section to receive their no cost (up to $15) safe transportation home. The SoberRide code is valid for the first 1,500 Lyft users who enter the code.
Last year, 225 persons in the Washington-metropolitan area used WRAP’s Cinco de Mayo SoberRide program rather than possibly driving home impaired. The charity also offers its SoberRide program on St. Patrick’s Day, Independence Day, Halloween and the winter holidays this year starting on December 15, 2017 and operating through and including New Year’s Eve.
(In March 2017, WRAP announced a partnership with the ridesharing service Lyft to provide WRAP’s SoberRide service in the Washington-metropolitan area through 2017. SoberRide, the popular free safe ride service to prevent drunk driving, will now be solely available via the Lyft mobile app ridesharing platform.)
“In 2015 and according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, nearly a third of all U.S. traffic fatalities during Cinco de Mayo involved drunk drivers,” said Kurt Gregory Erickson, WRAP’s President. “Worse, 51- percent of male drivers ages 21-to-34 killed in U.S. Cinco de Mayo crashes over the last half-decade were drunk.”
SoberRide is offered throughout Lyft’s Washington, D.C. coverage area which includes all or parts of: the District of Columbia; the Maryland counties of Montgomery and Prince George’s; and the Northern Virginia counties of Arlington, Fairfax, Loudoun and Prince William.
Sponsors of this year’s Cinco de Mayor SoberRide campaign include the 395 Express Lanes, AAA Mid-Atlantic, Anheuser-Busch, Brown-Forman, Constellation Brands, Diageo, District of Columbia Association of Beverage Alcohol Wholesalers, Enterprise Rent-A-Car, Giant Food, Glory Days Grill, Lyft, MillerCoors, Restaurant Association Metropolitan Washington, Volkswagen Group of America and the Washington Area New Automobile Dealers Association.
Since 1993, WRAP’s SoberRide program has provided 66,756 free safe rides home to would-be drunk drivers in the Greater Washington area.
Founded in 1982, the nonprofit [501(c)(3)] Washington Regional Alcohol Program (WRAP) is a coalition of diverse interests using effective education, innovative programs and targeted advocacy to end alcohol-impaired driving and underage drinking in the Washington, DC metro area. Through public education, innovative health education programs and advocacy, WRAP is credited with historically keeping the metroWashington area’s alcohol-related traffic deaths lower than the national average.
More information about WRAP’s SoberRide initiative can be found at
www.soberride.com.
*Source: National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, see:
https://www.trafficsafetymarketing.gov/sites/tsm.nhtsa.dot.gov/files/campaign_media/drunk_driving//earned_media/12894dcincodemayobuzzeddrivingfactsheettalkingpoints_040417_v1_tag.zip
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http://www.wrap.org/pdfs/2017sr-cinco-pr-regl.pdf
