Taxi Cabs Offer Safe Ride Home -- 12.10.2010
COLUMBUS PUBLIC HEALTH – Press Release
FOR FRIDAY, DECEMBER 10
Columbus Public Health Joins Local Businesses to Prevent Impaired Driving
The Central Ohio Safe Ride Program offers Taxi Cab Vouchers for Ride Home
COLUMBUS, OH – Columbus Public Health and Franklin County Safe Communities have joined local pubs and restaurants to prevent impaired driving this holiday season through the Central Ohio Safe Ride program. In its second year, the Safe Ride program provides taxi cab vouchers in order to prevent impaired people from getting behind the wheel of a car to get home.
Safe Ride vouchers are worth $10 toward a taxi ride home. The vouchers are purchased by local businesses and distributed to patrons who have been drinking. Patrons then can use the vouchers as cash with any taxi company participating in the Safe Ride program.
Safe Ride founding sponsors and participants are Fadó Irish Pub & Restaurant and Byrne’s Irish Pub. Other participating businesses include: Claddagh Irish Pub; The Pub at Polaris; The Derby; Armada; Columbus Distributing; Finest Call Mixers; Guinness; Hill Distributing; and, Superior Beverage.
“By participating in the Safe Ride Program, we can do our part to help protect the central Ohio community from impaired driving,” says Pat Byrne, owner of Byrne’s Irish Pub. “An added bonus is that we’ve also been recognized by the community as a responsible server and that is something we take very seriously.”
Safe Ride taxi partners include: Arch Express; A-One Transportation; Blue Cab Company; Central Ohio German Village Taxi; Buckeye Campus Taxi & Shuttle; Shamrock Taxi Services; and Yellow Cab.
Through March, businesses can purchase the vouchers for buy 10 and get 10 free. Vouchers can be distributed on special occasions or any time of year. Additional vouchers also can be ordered throughout the year.
In Franklin County in 2008, 40 people died and 825 were injured in alcohol-related crashes. “Too many people are needlessly killed and injured because of impaired driving in our community,” says Columbus Public Health Commissioner Dr. Teresa Long. “The Safe Ride program is one way we can work with local businesses to help stop this public health problem.”
For more information on the Central Ohio Safe Ride Program, visit Franklin County Safe Communities at www.saferide.fcsafecommunities.com.